Bay Shore parking lot buckles into sinkhole after historic rainfall

An area across four storefronts at the Bay Shore Commons shopping center was cordoned off by the Islip fire marshal Wednesday after the parking lot pavement buckled into a sinkhole about 24 feet in diameter and roughly 7 feet deep, according to maintenance technicians at the scene.

Nicole Teahan, 33, an employee at Bagel Boss, its entrance about 50 feet from the sinkhole, was serving up bagels and coffee to the morning rush crowd just before 9 a.m.

"Some customer came in and just started yelling, 'Call 911! You need to call 911! Hurry!' " Teahan said. "One of us went out and saw the sinkhole and the next thing I know, there was a truck with flashing lights on here."

Teahan, who had driven over the spot a short time earlier on her way to work, said, "I guess that's what happens when you get 13 inches of rain."

The National Weather Service said 13.27 inches of rain fell in Ronkonkoma at the town-owned airport Tuesday night into Wednesday in what forecasters said was a record.