Homeowner asks City of Charlotte for help with 6-foot-deep hole that keeps getting bigger

CHARLOTTE — A man says a massive hole in the backyard of his University City home is expanding, and he’s hoping the City of Charlotte can fix it.

Bernard Walker says the problem has been growing for the last year.

“Every time it rains it just gets bigger,” he said.

Walker says the massive opening started as two smaller holes. He discovered them when he fell inside while mowing his grass.

“I had to climb out of it,” Walker said. “I couldn’t just step out of it -- I had to climb out of it.”

He’s documented the growth along the way, taking photos and notes. He believes the problem stems from the adjacent stormwater drains, and said he called the City of Charlotte with no response.

“I got no complaint number on it, you know? They said they’d get back to me,” Walker said.

Desperate for answers and a fix, Walker said his homeowner’s insurance won’t cover the repairs. They claim it’s a city issue, he said.

“I have no resources to fix this. And if I try to fix this, who’s to say this won’t reoccur?”

Channel 9′s Anthony Kustura wanted to know just how deep the sinkhole actually goes. So he used a tape measure to discover the hole is at least 6 and a half feet deep.

Walker is concerned the hole will grow even more. For now, he has chicken wire attached to stakes along his fence to keep the family dog from falling. He just doesn’t want anyone to get hurt or hold him liable for a problem he says he didn’t create.

Walker said he now has a meeting with city officials and Stormwater Services Friday to get the issue resolved.

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