The sinkhole followed a weekend of high tides and flooding along Southern California’s coastline
Credit: Tristan Fewings/Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- A massive sinkhole formed near a Malibu home reportedly owned by Nicolas Cage, causing significant damage
- The Tuesday, Sept. 8 emergency led to a gas leak and prompted an evacuation order in the area
- The sinkhole followed a weekend of high tides and flooding along Southern California’s coastline due to Hurricane Marie
A sinkhole emerged outside a Malibu home reportedly linked to Nicolas Cage.
On Tuesday, Sept. 8, TMZ reported that a large sinkhole formed in part of the driveway of the actor’s Malibu home and on the roadway near the home. NBC News reported that the home is unoccupied and is linked to Cage, and The Los Angeles Times reported that real estate records show the actor owns the property.
In the photos, the sinkhole can be seen adjacent to the garage of the home. The extent of the damage to Cage’s property is unclear, but the photos show a portion of the driveway completely collapsed, with debris and broken asphalt inside the hole.
It remains unclear whether the sinkhole impacted the home, but it does appear to have come close to the property’s garage. According to photos obtained by TMZ, the collapse extended all the way to the beach below Cage’s home.
Credit: BACKGRID
Officials said that the sinkhole also caused a gas leak, per NBC News.
Los Angeles County Fire Department Public Information Officer Jonathan Torres said the department was alerted to the break around 5:45 a.m., KTLA reported. An evacuation order issued by the City of Malibu attributed the “expanding sinkhole” to coastal erosion.
By the evening, the sinkhole was roughly 25 feet deep and 30 by 60 feet wide, per the Los Angeles Times.
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Malibu officials said that conditions near the sinkhole are “likely to worsen” following high tides and rain caused by Hurricane Marie.
The evacuation order came after 31 homes in Malibu were red-tagged, meaning the homes are either unsafe or uninhabitable due to potential hazards or severe damage, Deadline reported.
Coastal flood and high surf advisories are in effect until 11 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 8 for the Malibu coast, Los Angeles County beaches, Catalina Island, Santa Barbara Islands and the Ventura County beaches, the National Weather Service announced.
The sinkhole comes amid a weekend of flooding along Southern California’s coast due to Hurricane Marie. The tropical storm caused unusually high tides, sending waves crashing past the shoreline and onto the streets of Long Beach, Seal Beach and Dana Point.
Around 20 homes along the Long Beach Peninsula were evacuated on Monday, Sept. 7, The Los Angeles Times reported. Another 14 homes were damaged in Dana Point, Orange County, Calif., with an additional six homes getting red-tagged on Tuesday, Sept. 8, KTLA reported.
PEOPLE reached out to representatives for Cage and the Los Angeles County Fire Department for comment.
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