Judge dismisses lawsuit over mine sinkholes in South Dakota

Associated Press

A judge in South Dakota has dismissed a lawsuit brought by dozens of neighbors in a subdivision beset by sinkholes caused by an old underground gypsum mine. The plaintiffs plan to appeal to the state Supreme Court over whether a kind of legal protection for the state applies in the case. An attorney for the state referred The Associated Press to a spokesman for Gov. Kristi Noem, who didn’t immediately return a message seeking comment. The lawsuit was filed in 2020, the same year a giant sinkhole opened up in the Hideaway Hills neighborhood. More holes and sinkings have occurred since, endangering homes, roads and utilities.