One dead at pool party in Israel after sinkhole swallows a swimming pool

A man died at a private pool party in Israel after a sinkhole opened up in an outdoor swimming pool and sucked all the water out, along with the victim.

An astonishing incident that occurred in Israel this afternoon, Thursday, July 21, has left one man dead after he fell into a sinkhole that opened up in an outdoor swimming pool. The incident occurred during a private party for a company’s employees at a private home in the town of Karmei Yosef, according to The Times of Israel.

The deceased man was in the pool when a sinkhole suddenly opened up, sucking all the water out of the swimming pool. Two people were dragged down but the second one – a 34-year-old man – managed to climb back out, reportedly suffering slight injuries.

Sinkhole opens up in the bottom of a swimming pool in Israel. Reports say one man was sucked in and died.pic.twitter.com/VBQbVrJnyp

— Noam Blum (@neontaster) July 21, 2022

A complicated search operation was initiated by the Fire and Rescue Services, with rescuers being lowered into the deep hole to try and find the missing man. As reported by the rescue team, their task was made all the more precarious by the possibility of another collapse while they were inside the sinkhole. 

After erecting a supporting structure to prevent a secondary collapse, rescuers were able to risk entering deeper into the hole. The team sent a dog in equipped with a GoPro camera, and a few hours into their search, they discovered the man’s lifeless body.

Some more info: It took hours to recover the body because the tunnel was unstable and they needed to send a dog in with a GoPro camera and then line the sides with some sort of stabilizing material. Potentially caused by slow water seepage over time destabilizing the soil. pic.twitter.com/E2MfowHdTo

— Noam Blum (@neontaster) July 21, 2022

An emergency helicopter was deployed by the police to scan the immediate vicinity for the likelihood of more sinkholes opening up.

A witness who attended the party told Channel 12 that around 50 people were at the party. “The water level suddenly started receding and a hole opened up, creating a vortex that swept two people inside”, they explained.

Another witness informed the Ynet news outlet that there could have been a higher casualty rate if there had been more than the actual six people in the pool at the time of the event. They told how the water was sucked out in a matter of seconds.

Believing that it was maybe some sort of a party game she suddenly realised what was happening and shouted for her friends to get out of the pool. She told the outlet: “Seconds later, the ground just dropped… I watched two people just disappear”.

The police have announced that a full investigation is being launched into the incident, including looking into whether the swimming pool had the relevant operating licence.

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