ALTON, Ill. — A popular Metro East park reopened Friday, weeks after mine subsidence caused a massive sinkhole to open on a soccer field.
Surveillance camera video of the sinkhole at Gordon F. Moore Park showed it swallowing a light post and with it, the chance of a typical summer in Alton.
The reopening of most of the park brought a glimpse of normalcy as the city deemed roads, walking paths and other parts of the park safe.
Before the June 26 closure, Michelle Steward used to come here four times a week to walk her dog, Sweets.
"There's a lot of walking and hiking," Steward, of nearby Bethalto, said when talking about some of her favorite parts of the park.
Steward was grateful the Mine Safety and Health Administration said most of the park was safe.
"I think it's important to get out and just walk around. It helps relieve stress and gets the dog some exercise," she said.
Steward's excitement was echoed by Alton Mayor David Goins, who said Wednesday that exploratory drilling found the mine ceilings under the park to be safe.
Because of fencing that can be as high as six feet in some places, visitors can't see the bottom of the Alton sinkhole. But from the soccer field sidelines, the parallel boundary lines on the field are clearly askew.
People who hadn't seen the sinkhole before Friday said that pictures didn't do it justice.
Leaders said the sinkhole has doubled, if not tripled, in size.
Engineers said that's normal and it could get even bigger — one of the reasons why many people on social media said they're hesitant to come back.
Steward, however, isn't nervous. She said she's been waiting for this day all summer.
"I think it's pretty common," she said. "I used to live in Florida and there were sinkholes everywhere. If you're going to be next to it, you have to be careful. But you don't know, it could just happen."
New Frontier Materials, which owns the mine, is still conducting a underground investigation.
Once a weakness is identified, the company will develop a plan to repair the sinkhole.