Nampa officers fall into sinkholes while checking water complaint near downtown

Neither officer was hurt, but both got an unexpected dip in frigid water when they walked down an alley late Monday, and the surface fell out from under them.

"Good thing the alley hadn't been plowed, or they would probably have driven a car in there," Nampa Police Sgt. Tim Riha said Tuesday morning.

Instead, officers James Williams and Jeff Tucker walked into the gravel alley between 6th and 7th streets off 12th Avenue South, one entering from each end, Riha said. Officer Williams fell completely through one waist-deep sinkhole; just one of Officer Tucker’s legs went through a separate sinkhole, he said. Both estimated they ended up in water between 2 and 4 feet deep.

The incident happened about 10:40 p.m., when the officers responded to a report of water in the roadway at 12th Avenue and 7th Street South, Riha said.

Early Tuesday morning, Nampa police posted photos of the sinkholes on Twitter and Facebook, noting that it was “too cold for swimming.”

The water-main rupture was repaired and the water was draining as of Tuesday afternoon, with no flooding or damage to nearby areas or businesses, according to a city spokeswoman.

This story was originally published January 17, 2017 at 8:07 AM with the headline "Nampa officers fall into sinkholes while checking water complaint near downtown."