“The grapes were swallowed up”: a gaping 17-metre hole suddenly opens up in the middle of the vines
|Un trou de 16 à 17 mètres de diamètre et de 8 mètres de profondeur s’est formé en plein milieu des vignes… (photo d’illustration). jacoblund – ENVATO ELEMENTS
A collapse of agricultural plots occurred in Champagne, in the Aisne, at the beginning of August 2024. It resulted in a gaping hole 17 meters in diameter and 8 meters deep in the middle of the vines.
A hole 16 to 17 meters in diameter and 8 meters deep in the middle of the vines… The image is impressive, relayed by France 3. It was captured in Crouttes-sur-Marne, southwest of Château-Thierry, in the Aisne.
A landslide of vineyard plots occurred in early August 2024, in the heart of the Champagne vineyard. The grapes were swallowed up.
“Really impressive”
“It's It's really impressive to see the vines hanging in the air […] But, for the winegrowers, it's still a constraint. “We have to pull out about 500 vines,” explains the mayor of the town, Hubert Adam.
How did this phenomenon has it happened ? It would be linked to the composition of the soil, to the degradation of an old gypsum quarry precisely, according to a geological engineer quoted by our colleagues.
Where does the phenomenon come from ?
These collapses are quite frequent. In 2022, about a hundred meters from the vineyard plot, another pit had formed, the specialist points out. There are about thirty in the surrounding area.
These events can be very brutal, according to specialists from the Geological and Mining Research Bureau. A meeting should be held in September 2024 with the authorities to take stock and locate the risk areas.