Dennis Norman, the landowner with the big hole in his driveway at 4637 Rustic Ridge Road, said his wife did a video recording of the children back in 2019 and he saw the crack in the driveway then.

He told the county about it this spring, before his driveway collapsed. Last Wednesday he was waiting around for somebody from the county to come out, who apparently already had, and I finally got his Commissioner to call him.

According to the dictionary and USGS, it’s a sinkhole.

The question is what caused it: “gradual soil movement”, a sewer pipe break, or a contractor running something along the road?

And who is responsible for the damages.

Also, are there more cavities that may collapse.

Alleged Sinkhole 2026-08-12, 4637 Rustic Ridge Road, Foxborough subdivision, Lowndes County, GA

Here’s a WWALS video playlist from the site:

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLalLgq5w7US8&si=VY1m8J6P8PGdqjcS

Dennis Norman had already called the county before his driveway collapsed. He thought it was a sinkhole then, and he’s still not sure.

He stuck his tape measure down in there, and it was 5 feet 3 inches deep before it collapsed.

Movie: Dennis Norman, the landowner, said he notified the county before the driveway fell in (800M), 2026-08-12 –jsq for WWALS

Crack in driveway, 4637 Rustic Ridge Road 2026-05-31, 13:31:10 –Dennis Norman

He said he told the county that measurement before it collapsed.

They came out and said it was private property and not much they could do.

Crack looking towards house, 2026-05-31, 13:31:54 –Dennis Norman

Around June 2 or 3rd the showed “the DMV” pictures of the hole.

Collapse, 2026-06-04, 11:02:21 –Dennis Norman

Hole under driveway, 2026-06-04, 11:02:32 –Dennis Norman

Cavity under driveway, 2026-06-04, 11:02:49 –Dennis Norman

After the collapse, in July, he found about a foot-long crack in the pipe. He assumed the dirt went down the pipe over time.

Sewer pipe in hole, 2026-06-25, 15:34:29 –Dennis Norman

He said he finally got told by Lowndes County Utilities that it is a sewer line. There’s a manhole in the middle of Rustic Ridge Road, so probably there’s a sewer line running under there that this sewer pipe connects to.

Manhole Center of Rustic Ridge Road at Hummingbird Lane, 2026-08-12 –jsq for WWALS

He says maybe it’s a sinkhole, maybe yes, maybe not. He thinks that’s a question for an engineer.

The county told him it’s his problem, because it’s on his side of the utility poles, so private property. The plumbing company he had come out said the same thing.

Power Line Is Right of Way Edge, 2026-08-12 –jsq for WWALS

His insurance company said they don’t cover “gradual soil movement”. Quite a euphemism. The insurance company sent an inspector who called it a sinkhole.

According to USGS, “A sinkhole is a depression in the ground that has no natural external surface drainage. Basically, this means that when it rains, all of the water stays inside the sinkhole and typically drains into the subsurface.”

According to Merriam-Webster, a sinkhole is “1: a hollow place or depression in which drainage collects”.

According to those definitions, this is a sinkhole.

The question is: what caused the sinkhole. Did the sewer pipe leak cause it? Or did “gradual soil movement” break the sewer pipe?

Dennis Norman thinks it was caused by the sewer line leak. There is no sign of any water getting in from anywhere else.

Sewer Pipe in Hole, 2026-08-12 –jsq for WWALS

According to Lowndes County Manager Paige Dukes at the July 28, 2026, Datacenter Session, it is not a sinkhole because it was caused by “a contractor that bored through the area, and they bored through a cavern, and it opened up”.

https://youtu.be/_DwU7ZGdPJU?si=DEKTc1-ActBc7Bt2&t=1899

Lowndes County Manager Paige Dukes, 2026-07-28 –jsq for LAKE

She looked to Lowndes County Utilities Director Steve Stalvey to back her up.

Lowndes County Utilities Director Steve Stalvey, 2026-07-28 –jsq for LAKE

1. What she said happened doesn’t make it not a sinkhole by the USGS or dictionary definitions.
2. If the contractor bored through a cavern, the cavern was already there, and that’s how sinkholes usually start.
3. Whoever the contractor was didn’t bore through the landowner’s property. So they must have been boring down the street right of way.
4. Which would seem to make it Lowndes County’s problem, or at least the contractor’s problem.

Meanwhile, the landowner purchased the pile of dirt from Rountree. Everything is paid for out of his, the landowner’s pocket.

The plumber repaired the pipe with a rubber connector.

Repaired Sewer Pipe, 2026-08-12 –jsq for WWALS

Dennis Norman said he was waiting to fill in the hole until “Steve” comes out from the county. Apparently that’s Steve Stalvey, the Lowndes County Utilities Director. Meanwhile, the landowner only had the backhoe operator for one day.

So I called Lowndes County Utilities, who said Steve had already been there and was in a meeting.

Then I called County Commissioner Scottie Orenstein, who said Steve gave him a detailed report, saying it was a sewer line break, not a sinkhole.

I told the Commissioner that I had not formed an opinion yet, because I had heard there was evidence of another cavity under the driveway next to the house.

Movie: A ground survey found another cavity under the driveway near the house (80M), 2026-08-12 –jsq for WWALS

The Commissioner finally called the landowner, Dennis Norman, who could then tell his contractor to go ahead and start work.

Across Rustic Ridge Road, there is subsidence in another driveway, at 4630 Rustic Ridge Road.

Cracks in driveway, 4630 Rustic Ridge Road, 2026-08-12 –jsq for WWALS

I went back the next day to get pictures and video of the hole filled in, and to record the rest of the story to that date.

Hole filled in, 6437 Rustic Ridge Road, 2026-08-13 –jsq for WWALS

Of course one reason this site has become notorious lately is that right behind the backyard fence is the property that was rezoned in July 2025 with a hypre-scale AI datacenter being one possibility.

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

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