Florida sinkhole swallows parts of resort near Disney World

AnneClaire Stapleton, CNN
Updated 7:32 AM EDT, Tue August 13, 2013

Story highlights

NEW: A guard is hailed for helping to save "lives, or limbs, or injuries"

Witness says couple, infant escaped through window after door frame collapsed

Two buildings at the Summer Bay Resort in Lake County are affected

All of the estimated 35 guests in the two buildings were evacuated and accounted for

(CNN) —  

A 60-foot-wide sinkhole formed under a resort in central Florida late Sunday, forcing guests out of their rooms as one three-story building collapsed and another slowly sank.

Guests at the Summer Bay Resort in Clermont, about 10 minutes from Walt Disney World, called for help before the collapse, saying they heard loud noises and windows cracking. All guests inside the buildings – an estimated 35 people, authorities said – were evacuated before the first structure crumbled.

Sinkhole eating family out of house and home

A roughly 15-foot-deep crater swallowed much of one building, Lake County Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Tony Cuellar said. Aerial video from CNN affiliate WFTV showed one end of the building – which had held two-bedroom, two-bathroom villas – still standing, but the rest reduced to a pile of debris.

A 60-foot-wide sinkhole formed under a resort in central Florida late on Sunday, August 11, forcing guests out of their rooms as one three-story building collapsed and another slowly sank.
Photos: Photos: Florida resort sinkhole
Florida resort sinkhole —  
A 60-foot-wide sinkhole formed under a resort in central Florida late on Sunday, August 11, forcing guests out of their rooms as one three-story building collapsed and another slowly sank.
PHOTO: John Raoux/AP Photo
Inspectors look over damage to buildings on Monday, August 12.
Photos: Photos: Florida resort sinkhole
Florida resort sinkhole —  
Inspectors look over damage to buildings on Monday, August 12.
PHOTO: John Raoux/AP Photo
Guests at the Summer Bay Resort in Clermont, about 10 minutes from Walt Disney World, called for help before the collapse, saying they heard loud noises and windows cracking.
Photos: Photos: Florida resort sinkhole
Florida resort sinkhole —  
Guests at the Summer Bay Resort in Clermont, about 10 minutes from Walt Disney World, called for help before the collapse, saying they heard loud noises and windows cracking.
PHOTO: Red Huber/Orlando Sentinel/MCT via Getty Images
All guests inside the buildings -- an estimated 35 people, authorities said -- were evacuated before the first structure crumbled.
Photos: Photos: Florida resort sinkhole
Florida resort sinkhole —  
All guests inside the buildings -- an estimated 35 people, authorities said -- were evacuated before the first structure crumbled.
PHOTO: John Raoux/AP Photo
Florida is known for sinkholes. The Florida Senate Committee on Banking and Insurance reported that insurers received 24,671 claims for sinkhole damage in that state alone between 2006 and 2010.
Photos: Photos: Florida resort sinkhole
Florida resort sinkhole —  
Florida is known for sinkholes. The Florida Senate Committee on Banking and Insurance reported that insurers received 24,671 claims for sinkhole damage in that state alone between 2006 and 2010.
PHOTO: John Raoux/AP Photo
This photo shows a giant sinkhole (C) in a five-lane urban boulevard, eroding soil and exposing underground steel columns supporting commercial buildings in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, on November 8, 2016. No injuries were reported as the accident occurred in the early morning hours. / AFP / JIJI PRESS / STR / Japan OUT (Photo credit should read STR/AFP/Getty Images)
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
This photo shows a giant sinkhole (C) in a five-lane urban boulevard, eroding soil and exposing underground steel columns supporting commercial buildings in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, on November 8, 2016. No injuries were reported as the accident occurred in the early morning hours. / AFP / JIJI PRESS / STR / Japan OUT (Photo credit should read STR/AFP/Getty Images)
PHOTO: STR/AFP/AFP/Getty Images
Eight Corvettes fell into a sinkhole that opened up beneath a section of the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky, on February 12. The sinkhole was about 40 feet wide and 25-30 feet deep.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
Eight Corvettes fell into a sinkhole that opened up beneath a section of the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky, on February 12. The sinkhole was about 40 feet wide and 25-30 feet deep.
PHOTO: Corvette Museum
An increasing number of sinkholes have appeared in and around the neighborhood where the Lotte World Tower is being built in Seoul, South Korea. The first one was discovered in June and several others have appeared since then, according to local media reports, causing the construction of what would be Seoul
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
An increasing number of sinkholes have appeared in and around the neighborhood where the Lotte World Tower is being built in Seoul, South Korea. The first one was discovered in June and several others have appeared since then, according to local media reports, causing the construction of what would be Seoul's tallest building to come under scrutiny.
PHOTO: Ahn Young-joon/AP/File
The rear portion of a residential home is consumed by a sinkhole November 14 in Dunedin, Florida.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
The rear portion of a residential home is consumed by a sinkhole November 14 in Dunedin, Florida.
PHOTO: Luke Johnson-Pool/Getty Images
A 60-foot-wide sinkhole formed underneath the Summer Bay Resort in Clermont, Florida, about 10 minutes from Walt Disney World, on August 11. One resort building collapsed, and another slowly sank.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
A 60-foot-wide sinkhole formed underneath the Summer Bay Resort in Clermont, Florida, about 10 minutes from Walt Disney World, on August 11. One resort building collapsed, and another slowly sank.
PHOTO: Red Huber/Orlando Sentinel/MCT/LANDOV
A backhoe is swallowed by a sinkhole in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on August 6. The driver of the backhoe was not injured.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
A backhoe is swallowed by a sinkhole in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on August 6. The driver of the backhoe was not injured.
PHOTO: Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press/ap
A sinkhole killed a guard at a construction site in Shenzhen, China, on March 27. The sinkhole might have been caused by heavy rains and the collapsing of old water pipes running beneath the surface, the Shenzhen Special Zone Daily reported.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
A sinkhole killed a guard at a construction site in Shenzhen, China, on March 27. The sinkhole might have been caused by heavy rains and the collapsing of old water pipes running beneath the surface, the Shenzhen Special Zone Daily reported.
PHOTO: STRINGER/AFP/Getty Images
Workers watch the demolition of the house where a sinkhole opened three days before in Seffner, Florida, on March 3. Sinkholes caused by acidic groundwater corroding the limestone or carbonate rock underground are common in Florida, according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
Workers watch the demolition of the house where a sinkhole opened three days before in Seffner, Florida, on March 3. Sinkholes caused by acidic groundwater corroding the limestone or carbonate rock underground are common in Florida, according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
PHOTO: REUTERS /SCOTT AUDETTE /LANDOV
Buildings fell into a sinkhole near a subway construction site in Guangzhou, China, in January 2013. The hole measured about 1,000 square feet across and 30 feet deep and was without casualties, according to a state media report.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
Buildings fell into a sinkhole near a subway construction site in Guangzhou, China, in January 2013. The hole measured about 1,000 square feet across and 30 feet deep and was without casualties, according to a state media report.
PHOTO: STRINGER/AFP/Getty Images
A basketball court in Ortley Beach, New Jersey, fell into a sinkhole caused by Superstorm Sandy in November 2012.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
A basketball court in Ortley Beach, New Jersey, fell into a sinkhole caused by Superstorm Sandy in November 2012.
PHOTO: Mark Wilson/Getty Images
In July 2011, a man inspects a 40-foot-deep sinkhole that a family found after they heard a booming noise in their kitchen in Guatemala City, Guatemala.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
In July 2011, a man inspects a 40-foot-deep sinkhole that a family found after they heard a booming noise in their kitchen in Guatemala City, Guatemala.
PHOTO: JOHAN ORDONEZ/AFP/Getty Images
Construction on a subway line caused a huge sinkhole to form in a road in Beijing in April 2011.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
Construction on a subway line caused a huge sinkhole to form in a road in Beijing in April 2011.
PHOTO: STR/AFP/Getty Images
An aerial photo shows sinkholes created by the drying of the Dead Sea near Israel in 2011.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
An aerial photo shows sinkholes created by the drying of the Dead Sea near Israel in 2011.
PHOTO: MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP/Getty Images
A utility worker examines the area around a sinkhole caused by a broken water main in Chevy Chase, Maryland, in December 2010.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
A utility worker examines the area around a sinkhole caused by a broken water main in Chevy Chase, Maryland, in December 2010.
PHOTO: Logan Mock-Bunting/Getty Images
Tropical Storm Agatha caused a sinkhole to open in Guatemala City in May 2010.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
Tropical Storm Agatha caused a sinkhole to open in Guatemala City in May 2010.
PHOTO: EPA/PRESIDENCY/HO/Luis Echeverria /Landov
A fire truck protrudes from a sinkhole as Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa talks to reporters in September 2009.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
A fire truck protrudes from a sinkhole as Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa talks to reporters in September 2009.
PHOTO: David McNew/Getty Images
A water main collapsed an entire block-long part of Ocean Park Boulevard in Santa Monica, California, in December 2002.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
A water main collapsed an entire block-long part of Ocean Park Boulevard in Santa Monica, California, in December 2002.
PHOTO: MIKE NELSON/AFP/Getty Images
In Orlando, a sinkhole 150 feet wide and 60 feet deep swallowed trees, pipelines and a section of sidewalk near an apartment building in June 2002.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
In Orlando, a sinkhole 150 feet wide and 60 feet deep swallowed trees, pipelines and a section of sidewalk near an apartment building in June 2002.
PHOTO: Chris Livingston/Getty Images
A 30-foot-deep sinkhole appeared in a busy street in a suburb east of downtown Los Angeles. A motorist drove into the hole but was rescued before a concrete slab fell onto the car.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
A 30-foot-deep sinkhole appeared in a busy street in a suburb east of downtown Los Angeles. A motorist drove into the hole but was rescued before a concrete slab fell onto the car.
PHOTO: CARLOS SCHIEBECK/AFP/Getty Images
"The Great Blue Hole" is the name of a massive underwater sinkhole off the coast of Belize. The deeper you go, the clearer the water becomes, revealing amazing stalactites and limestone.
Photos: Photos: When the ground gives way
When the ground gives way —  
"The Great Blue Hole" is the name of a massive underwater sinkhole off the coast of Belize. The deeper you go, the clearer the water becomes, revealing amazing stalactites and limestone.
PHOTO: Courtesy Belize Tourism Board

The evacuation started after 10:30 p.m., when a guest told a security guard about a “window blowing out,” said resort president Paul Caldwell.

After another window broke in the guard’s presence, the guard called a co-worker and, together, they got everybody out.

“He estimated, I think, about 40 minutes after everyone was evacuated, the big fall came,” Caldwell said about the first guard.

“His quick thinking, in my opinion, saved lives, or limbs, or injuries,” he said.

No injuries were reported.

A couple and their infant escaped through a window because a door frame had collapsed, witness Maggie Ghamry told WFTV.

“He, his wife and an infant, he had to break the window so they could escape,” Ghamry told WFTV. “There were windows breaking everywhere.

“One woman was sitting in the tub, and the tub levitated, and that’s when she just grabbed a pair of shorts and came out with nothing.”

CNN affiliate WFTV: Buildings damaged

That woman wasn’t the only one to leave belongings behind. Other guests left keys and bags in their rooms, and it wasn’t clear Monday whether guests would be able to get items back from parts of the collapsed building, Caldwell said.

The resort has made other rooms available to all of the affected guests.

“Those items … to be very bluntly, realistic – may never be retrieved,” Caldwell said. “They are not going to let us in there to go get stuff for people.”

Sinkholes: Common, costly and sometimes deadly

Florida is notorious for mammoth sinkholes. In February, a sinkhole opened beneath a suburban Tampa home, swallowing 36-year-old Jeff Bush from his bedroom. Bush’s body was never recovered.

Sinkholes often start when bedrock dissolves but the surface of the ground stays intact. The void eventually collapses.

Living with a sinkhole under your home

CNN’s Martin Savidge, Holly Yan and Jason Hanna contributed to this report.