A Nashville pickup driver says she is lucky to be walking away after her truck dropped into a massive crater that opened up under Old Hickory Boulevard during a Tuesday night storm. The collapse left her with three flat tires and serious undercarriage damage, but she and other nearby motorists avoided major injuries. The hole opened in the northbound right lane near DuPont-Hadley Middle School and led to a brief closure while crews fixed the problem.
As reported by NewsChannel 5, Taylor Stevens shared video of the gaping hole and said her pickup dropped in around 10:15 p.m. Tuesday as she was changing lanes. The Tennessee Department of Transportation told the station the sinkhole formed after a stormwater pipe beneath the road collapsed, and crews filled and repaved the area Thursday morning. Stevens told the station the road was “completely sinking in” and added, “I’m talking 6 feet in the ground, 5 feet of road missing.”
Drivers whose vehicles were damaged in the incident may be able to seek compensation through the state’s Risk Management Fund. According to the Tennessee Treasury, claimants have to document their losses and show that the roadway condition was created or allowed to persist due to state negligence, or that officials had prior notice and did not act.
How to report road hazards
Metro Nashville steers non-emergency reports to its hubNashville 311 service so crews can get clear locations and photos before they roll out. Per hubNashville, residents can dial 311, use the mobile app, or visit hub.Nashville.gov to log issues and upload images, which helps crews find and fix dangerous spots more quickly.
Why the collapse matters
Heavy rain has a way of exposing weak links in stormwater and underground utility systems, sometimes causing sudden collapses where soil and pipes give out. Local crews were already dealing with water main breaks and other storm damage earlier this month, as reported by WSMV, and Metro planning documents on stormwater management highlight the ongoing challenge of keeping aging drainage systems in shape as intense storms keep rolling through.
