Sinkhole risk in Preble County, OH: Mostly deep or small

Mostly deep or small

Some soluble rock, mostly deeply buried or in a small share of the county.

On soluble rock: 100%
At or near the surface: 0%
Buried under cover: 100%

What to do about a house in Preble County

Sinkholes are uncommon here; watch for new depressions after heavy rain or leaking pipes.

That works out to roughly 424 of Preble County's 424 square miles on soluble rock. With about 40,801 residents (96 per square mile), there is effectively nowhere in the county off the soluble rock, town or country. The figures come from 386 map points about 1.0 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Two things to read before deciding: why the 100% under cover still counts, and how these percentages are measured.

Counties around Preble County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Kenton County, KY, about 56 miles south. 4 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band, so this is a regional pattern rather than a local quirk.

Union County, IN 17 mi southwest · 0% at surface
Montgomery County, OH 19 mi east · 0% at surface
Wayne County, IN 21 mi northwest · under 1% at surface
Butler County, OH 21 mi south · 0% at surface
Darke County, OH 27 mi north · 0% at surface
Fayette County, IN 30 mi west · 0% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Drakes, Whitewater and Liberty Formations, Undivided (shale), Ordovician in age, covering about 40% of the county. Next is the Lockport Dolomite at 30%.

Against the rest of Ohio

Preble County ranks 68 of 88 in Ohio for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 0% of US counties on that measure.