One evening in 2013, Jeremy from Seffner, Florida, was alerted by his brother Jeffrey Bush crying out for help from his room. When he entered he was met with a nightmarish sight, his brother was nowhere to be seen and where the floor had been there was now a gaping sinkhole. It’s over 13 years since that fateful night but Jeremy is still haunted by what happened.
The sinkhole had opened up suddenly, giving nobody a chance to react. Jeffrey was trapped under the gravel but Jeremy could hear him begging for help. Unfortunately there was nothing he could do, his brother was entombed beneath the ground, they never even recovered the body.
In the end, the Bush’s home along with two neighboring homes had to be demolished due to the damage caused by the sinkhole, a memorial was placed at the edge of the fenced off area.
Jeremy still relives Jeffrey’s death
But for Jeremy moving on has been difficult. Naturally the events of that night were traumatizing and not something one could get over easily but it isn’t helped by the fact that the sinkhole keeps reopening.
The Seffner sinkhole opened up again just two years after the initial incident, in 2015. Then, it happened again in 2023. Every time the sinkhole opens up it reopens those same old wounds for Jeremy, “I live this nightmare every day,” he stated (via Fox 13). He went on to speak about the effects the incident has had on his mental and physical health.
“Every day. I have a hard time sleeping. It’s just rough. Just let him be. His final resting place was that [sinkhole]. It just keeps opening up, and they keep adding more dirt on top of them. It is sad to me.”
The death of Jeffrey was a nightmarish experience for Jeremy and one he’ll no doubt remember for the rest of his days.
Keeping an eye on the sinkhole
As for the sinkhole itself, engineers have filled the hole whenever it has reopened but it will likely keep reopening which no doubt is a source of much anguish for Jeremy. The engineers added a design so that it would collapse in the same spot every time. This was done intentionally to prevent damage to other areas in the future.
“The depression isn’t going to find another place to try and meander,” John-Paul Lavandeira with Hillsborough County code enforcement explained. “It will stay right there, and it’s the easiest point of attack, so that’s really the best situation in this scenario. We can actually control when and if there is a recurrence.”
As for Jeffrey Bush, his body is likely lost forever, and the persistent sinkhole will forever be a sad and bitter reminder of that fact.
Published: Mar 19, 2026 08:19 am