Sinkhole risk in Sussex County, VA: 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: 14%
At or near the surface: 14%
Buried under cover: 0%

What to do about a house in Sussex County

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

That works out to roughly 69 of Sussex County's 490 square miles on soluble rock, 69 of them with the rock at or near the surface. With about 10,753 residents (22 per square mile), much of the land is open, and the mapped rock may sit far from where people actually live. The figures come from 505 map points about 1.0 miles apart, so a pocket smaller than that can be missed or overstated.

Counties around Sussex County

The nearest county rated sinkhole country is Hertford County, NC, about 42 miles south. 2 of the 6 closest counties land in the same band; the ground changes quickly around here.

Southampton County, VA 17 mi southeast · 21% at surface
Prince George County, VA 18 mi north · 13% at surface
Petersburg city, VA 21 mi north · 17% at surface
Emporia city, VA 22 mi southwest · 0% at surface
Dinwiddie County, VA 23 mi northwest · under 1% at surface
Greensville County, VA 24 mi southwest · 2% at surface

The rock underneath

The largest mapped soluble unit here is the Chesapeake Group (sand), Tertiary in age, covering about 14% of the county.

Against the rest of Virginia

Sussex County ranks 51 of 133 in Virginia for soluble rock at the surface, and sits above 71% of US counties on that measure.