Jacksonville woman on cave-in: 'I went face first into the hole'

A Jacksonville woman is calling for the city to fix a cave-in after she says she crashed into it head first while biking down Old St. Augustine Road.

Kathy Barbour is a mom of two and avid cyclist.

She says her husband saw the hole at Deeder Lane while they were training for a triathlon at 5:15 a.m. Friday -- but it was too late.

"I'm trailing him and didn’t have that opportunity to move over in time," she said. "I went face first into the hole and skidded across the ground, braced myself with my arms."

She showed Action News Jax bruises on her wrists and road rash on her arms. She says thankfully, she was wearing a helmet -- and there wasn't much traffic that early in the morning.

"If I had hit it at an angle, the bike easily could have ricocheted me off into the road. If a car had come I could’ve been smashed so easily," she said.

Barbour said she first noticed the hole a month and a half ago. A barricade covered it Monday morning -- but Barbour says the barricade wasn't there Friday.

"Someone must have hit it or moved it," she said.

Action News Jax brought her concerns to the City of Jacksonville and found out the city has received nine complaints about the hole since April.

A spokesperson said it is among 409 cave-ins that public works is working to address.

The spokesperson said 182 holes are considered highest priority, because they are in the roadway. Click here for the full statement from the city.

"It is extremely important to have roads that are well paved and taken care of," Barbour said. "Especially in a dedicated bike lane."

According to the spokesperson, repair work is expected to begin on the cave-in on Old St. Augustine Road within the next 45 to 60 days.

Barbour said she hopes it is complete before someone else gets hurt.

Cox Media Group