Some arid valleys of central and southeastern Arizona are home to giant earth cracks that swallow everything on their paths.
These huge earth fissures threaten people, property, infrastructure and livestock.
Giant cracks do not only open up in Mexico, but also in arid Arizona. These earth fissures pose danger to cattle, wildlife, and unwary humans. And, because they tend to develop perpendicular to surface drainage, they can capture runoff and develop into large gullies.
Most earth fissures in Arizona occur in the corridor between Tucson and Phoenix, and from Phoenix west along interstate 10. Here an example of one of these Arizona giant cracks that opened up on the Navajo Nation ground. The still growing 900 feet long crack is 12 miles north of I-40. It is up to 500 feet deep in places. The USGS has no real answer other than growing tensions in the local rock formations have caused the cracks to form.
This giant fissure sits east of Flagstaff on Luepp Rd and is about one mile west of Leupp gas station. It’s gotten so big, that they had to fence it in. The large crack has many residents on the Navajo reservation and in the state of Arizona concerned as fears grow over the expansion of the crack.
In 2017, the crack was measuring and amazing 10 feet wide and up to 30 feet deep in some parts and was the largest fissure in the desert of Arizona… and probably still continues to grow:
Finally, with the 2013’s collapse of highway 89 near Page, some local residents wonder what mother nature has in mind for the vast reservation:
So How Do These Arizona Cracks Form?
As explained on the Arizona’s Earth fissure center:
Earth fissures are associated with basin subsidence that accompanies extensive ground water mining. In Arizona, fissures were first noted near Eloy in 1929. Their physical appearance varies greatly, but they may be more than a mile in length, up to 15 ft wide, and 100s of feet deep. During torrential rains they erode rapidly presenting a substantial hazard to people and infrastructure. Moreover, fissures provide a ready conduit to deliver runoff and contaminated waters to basin aquifers. Rapid population growth in southern Arizona is increasingly juxtaposing population centers and fissures.
As the Arizona Geological Survey (AZGS) writes:
Giant desiccation cracks are common in southwestern U.S. playas and have been reported in several areas of Arizona but they are much more common than previously recognized. These giant cracks are similar to mudcracks or large soil cracks, but on an enormous scale. The cracks themselves are up to 3 feet (1 m) wide, up to 9 feet (2 m) deep (apparent depth), and a few are on the order of 1000 feet (300 m) long. They form polygonal blocks that look identical to the shape of mudcracks, but the polygons are characteristically 150-600 feet (45-180 m) across whereas typical mudcracks form polygons 4-8 inches (10-20 cm) across and large soil cracks form polygons 2-6 feet (0.5- 2 m) across. Some giant desiccation cracks are large enough to be mistaken for earth fissures that are caused by subsidence from groundwater pumping.
According to the U.S. geological survey, earthquakes come and go in the northern parts of Arizona, which also covers the reservation, it’s not big enough to rattle down buildings, but maybe to create those cracks.
In any cases these cracks are gradually swallowing and tearing the instabile limestone ground of Arizona.
I guess nobody has heard of the Grand Canyon .
LOL
THE LORD says the earth is expanding because the core of the earth is heating up,AND ITS BEING CAUSED BY THE APPROCH OF THE “NIBIRU MINI SOLAR SYSTEM”,and its going to really take off as NIBIRU get closer..but keep listening to the LIEING WHORES in your government they know better then the LORD right?
THEY SHOULD BRING DIRT AND SOME ROCKS IN AND FILL IN THESE CRACKS. WHY DON’T THEY FILL IN THE CRACKS AND HOLES WITH DIRT AND ROCKS? WE GOT TRUCKS, TRACTORS AND MORE. IT WOULD BE EASY TO DO…BUILD SKY SCRAPERS BUT CAN NOT FILL IN CRACKS? WHAT IS GOING ON?
Ironically, a contributing factor is the *California* droughts. A lot of CA pecan farmers gave up and moved to AZ, where they established huge pecan orchards in southeastern AZ. However, these areas typically already had critical groundwater aquifers, and the surge in pumping opened up cracks even quite distant from the new orchards, and has dropped water well levels. Well drillers in the area have a huge backlog of work orders to deepen existing wells. These developments have angered longtime residents.
A crack across Dragoon Rd opened up just east of Cochise Stronghold Rd, necessitating emergency patches and road signs warning about possible “earth fissures.”
NASA photos taken by U2 overflights in the 1960s clearly showed huge areas affected by subsidence just NW of Tucson. I-10 had to be repeatedly repaired at the edges of the sunken area.
[…] And with this drought, the giant cracks in the Earth won’t stop swallowing up the ground of Arizona. […]
[…] Originally Posted by SandSissy I would love the crack to become a deep fissure. Careful of what you wish for.. Do you know what I am talking about? There was no quake felt when this was spotted, that's probably cause like you say it was a deep fissure fracture caused by the quake they had a year back and the surface is now dropping to fill in the void bellow. Other cracks has opened up in NW Mexico & Montana.. Want me to connect the dots (er I mean cracks) for you?? You better get some flotation tires for the MoHo Mystery Arizona Giant Cracks fissure and swallow ground gradually (video) […]
[…] That leaves the possibility that new sinkholes, or one giant sinkhole may form. This is similar to Arizona where giant cracks mysteriously appear deep in the ground. […]
[…] leaves the possibility that new sinkholes, or one giant sinkhole may form. This is similar to Arizona where giant cracks mysteriously appear deep in the ground. This area is heavily populated with oil and gas production equipment and installations, […]
[…] LINK […]
[…] Maybe some giant cracks will suddenly widen in the near future. […]
The giant crack between Tucson and Sahuarita in the Tohono O’odam res. Between the I-19 and Nogales Hwy, has been getting wider over the past few years.
[…] This crack in the canyon wall is the largest one in years, and workers at the dam have been watching it closely […]
[…] Moreover, giant earth cracks are opening up in the dry ground of Navajo County! […]
[…] days ago I was speaking about giant cracks forming and swallowing Arizona’s ground. Well it seems that Tempe’s soil is also pretty unstable. Following a water main break a bus […]