Bayou Corne is an unincorporated community in Louisiana with a population of 38 citizens according to the 2022 census. This tiny oasis is located in Assumption Parish and is bordered by a Bayou of the same name. The areas combined has a total of 350 residents and the region is said to have been inhabited since the 1700s. First settled by the Acadians for its economic opportunities of gator hunting and crawfish farming.

Fast forward a few centuries, in June 2012 folks in sleepy Bayou noticed an unusual phenomenon. The water would bubble and the ground shook randomly. The activity prompted local officials to suspect a natural gas leak could be the cause, but enlisted the experts from the US Geological Survey do a scientific investigation.

The earthquakes were noted in the area, but pipelines were ruled out as the cause. By August 3, 2012 the situation had worsened with residents were reporting the odor of crude oil in the air. Governor Bobby Jindal declared a state of emergency and issued an evacuation order. Government officials became concerned that a sinkhole was developing. Texas Brine Company, a salt mining and underground storage company was working in the salt dome Oxy3 Cavern at the time. They denied the possibility a sinkhole but it was not only possible, it was happening!

By August 2018 Houma Today Newspaper reported that the Bayou Corne Sinkhole had severely impacted the community. The population in the region was already low at 350. Six years later the community had whittled down to less than 30.

Many residents were forced to moved, due to property damage and the loss of employed because businesses were closing. All of which was because the Bayou was still disappearing, the continued airborne gases and the expanding sinkhole that was swallowing everything in site. When it first appeared the sinkhole was 2.5 acres, by 2018 it had grown to a monstrous 34 acres and some 750 - feet deep!

This is the last story we could find about the sinkhole in Bayou Corne, LA. I hope that no news, is a sign of good news and the salt dome walls beneath have finally stopped collapsing. Irresponsible mining and drilling are blamed for the devastation caused in Bayou Corne. To learn more see the documentaries, Forgotten Bayou (2016) and Monster In The Bayou.

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