In spring of 2020, a sinkhole was discovered in a suburban Rapid City development. The sinkhole was created by an abandoned state-owned gypsum mine. Four years later, homeowners are still without closure and a new study says homes are still at risk.
The Hideaway Hills development is still deemed unsafe for residents to live in, and class-action litigation continues.
A new engineering study commissioned by the homeowners’ attorneys found “remaining homeowners should leave because soils under and around their homes contain gypsum and present a very serious threat to their lives and property.”
Kathy Barrow is an attorney for the Fox-Rothschild Law Firm, which represents the homeowners. She said following testing, there are multiple distinct issues in the development.
“One is, of course, everybody has heard about the mine," Barrow said. "It is continuing to take on water. The second problem that we have out there is a very fine fill dirt that was used in the reclamation. That fill dirt has a very high concentration of gypsum dust. What that means is every time it rains it is undermining the subsurface that is holding up the houses.”
Barrow said 157 homes are currently deemed as serious risks.
“There is a group that were evacuated after the sinkhole became apparent," Barrow said. "Our geotechnical engineer has recommended certain addresses also leave their home. It is, of course, up to them whether they do or not, but the engineer feels they’re in imminent danger. The recommendation for the remaining of Hideaway Hills is that these folks be evacuated.”
Barrow said the matter has become tense for homeowners.
“This has been going on a long time, litigation takes a long time, it just does," Barrow said. "It’s not a good remedy for an emergency situation, and many of them are paying a mortgage on their home here and are actually living elsewhere and paying living costs.”
Homeowners who previously opted out of the lawsuit now have until May 1 to opt back in. The court date has been scheduled for autumn of this year.