Concretelined canal causes large sinkhole, homeowner waiting for repairs
Mar 21, 2025
BATON ROUGE - How long does it take to fix a sinkhole? Bridget Lee has been waiting for two years. What started as a small hole between her backyard and the concrete lining of a creek has grown considerably.In November, the city placed orange fencing around the area and used zip ties to secure it t
o Lee's fence and wooden posts. She has since covered the growing hole with wooden boards to prevent further erosion."All of this has washed away since then," said Lee.Her home backs up to Hurricane Creek in the Lakewood Subdivision. In March of 2023, Lee says she called the city and made a work order. Someone from the city visited her home to take a look at the damage, they took photos and made a phone call."He left and about 10 minutes later I got an email saying it was closed out with no explanation or anything," said Lee.Each time Lee calls the city, someone visits to view the sinkhole. What started as a small hole has now grown into a large one, that's damaged the concrete lining of the creek and exposed washed-out soil and exposed tree roots below.Things got a little strange last week when Lee called the city for an update. She was given a number to a third party and told to contact them."They had no idea what I was talking about," she said.The number led her to the American Rescue Plan Drainage Initiative Stormwater Repair hotline, which was unfamiliar with Lee's case. The hotline was created under the Broome Administration. That's when she called 2 On Your Side."I've been trying to get someone to come out and I'm just not getting anywhere," she said.All she has been left with is a growing hole and a whole lot of frustration. Lee would like to know who is responsible for maintaining the creek and fixing the sinkhole."I just don't know where to go from here," she said.The city says there is a plan to fix the problem behind Lee's house and work should begin mid-summer. It's one of five projects where a concrete-lined canal needs repairs. The parish has completed work on 66 of these calls.Permalink| Comments ...read more read less
