Missouri Ranked Among the Riskiest States for Sinkholes

We have learned the hard way again why the risk of a sinkhole suddenly appearing under your feet is more likely to happen in Missouri than nearly any other state and it's a constant danger.

The Missouri Department of Transportation shared an update just a couple days ago about the reason traffic would be disrupted in downtown St. Louis. If you guessed sinkhole, you guessed correctly.

How many sinkholes are there in Missouri right now?

The Missouri Department of Natural Resources estimates there are at least 16,000 sinkholes in the state and those are just the ones we know about. They believe that many more exist that have not been reported and that doesn't include the areas where there's a sinkhole danger that hasn't happened yet.

Why is Missouri a sinkhole hotspot?

Missouri has extensive karst terrain which is when slightly acidic water dissolves soluble bedrock like limestone, dolomite, or gypsum. There's also the fact that Missouri has over 7,500 documented caves not including the caverns that have not been located yet that might be beneath your feet right now. Rivers like the Mississippi and Missouri can trigger ground collapse with water levels that are constantly changing and with major flooding events, too.

All of these factors add up to the reality that if you live in Missouri, it's quite possible that a sinkhole could impact your life in one way or another at some point. I have to wonder if LiDAR scans like the ones being done in Florida might be a project Missouri could embrace. That can detect sinkhole troubles before they happen and many in Missouri would benefit from knowing ahead of time whether the ground under them is trustable.