WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas — Crews Monday are beginning work to fill a cave in Williamson County's Brushy Creek neighborhood.
You may remember the cave collapsed in February on Cambria Drive and stretches underneath three homes.
In the middle of the neighborhood, a crane towers over homes, a forklift lifts materials and an excavator is ready for work.
"It's kind of exciting,” said 8-year-old Cambria Drive resident Ben Johnson.
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Children like him spend their summer fascinated by the work, all because of what lies beneath -- the 200-foot-long cave.
"Now, this is a very different repair from what we're used to,” said Williamson County spokeswoman Connie Odom. “It's not your typical pothole.”
WilCo is paying about $500,000 to Chasco Constructors to fill the cave and fix Cambria Drive.
This week, crews are taking off the cave's cover and excavating debris that fell in when the cave roof collapsed.
Then, environmentalists will explore it to make sure the cavern is not bigger than originally thought.
"Just trying to see if there's any connection to this cave,” said Odom.
The cave will then be filled with gravel and concrete, but only the portion under the road, not underneath these homes.
The county said it is not filling in the cave under the homes because it is only responsible for county property and is not spending tax dollars on private land.
Tim Kelley lives on Cambria Drive and said he would have liked to see the cave filled under the homes.
“The other option is they could have just bought the houses from people and turned it into a preserve or something,” he said.
The county has this plan approved by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and said it is safe. Other neighbors said they are happy to see mitigation work.
"It's been a little frustrating,” said Cambria Drive resident Amanda Johnson. “But you know at this point, to see the work being done, we're just thrilled."
Williamson County said contractors have until October to finish filling the cave, but it may take longer if more chambers or connections are found.