Sinkhole swallows 2 vehicles and forces evacuations in Las Cruces

LAS CRUCES, N.M. — A large sinkhole in the front yard of a home swallowed two vehicles and forced evacuations in Las Cruces.

Dispatch sent firefighters to a report of a sinkhole on the 1700 block of Regal Ridge Street around 9:30 p.m. Monday. They arrived and found a sinkhole around 30 feet wide and 30 feet deep that had engulfed two vehicles parked in the driveway and was still settling.

They reported no injuries. However, people in three homes had to evacuate. The American Red Cross is assisting them.

Las Cruces utility officials and El Paso Electric were called to secure the utilities and evaluate if any service lines may have been compromised within the neighborhood.

For now, authorities closed Regal Ridge Street to traffic until engineers and crews can determine the cause of the sinkhole and how safe the road is. They anticipate intermittent closures and utility services in the coming days while they determine how to backfill the sinkhole.