A Shocking Morning Call
Before dawn on February 12, 2014, security alarms at the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky, signaled trouble. When staff arrived, they discovered a massive sinkhole had opened inside the Skydome, swallowing eight prized Corvettes. The Bowling Green Fire Department quickly secured the scene.
No one was inside when the collapse occurred. The hole measured roughly 40 feet (about 12 meters) wide and 25 to 30 feet (about 7.6 to 9 meters) deep.
Eight Iconic Cars Lost Underground
The sinkhole engulfed a mix of loaned and museum-owned cars. Two vehicles were on loan from General Motors: a 1993 ZR-1 Spyder and the 2009 ZR1 “Blue Devil.”
Six others belonged to the museum itself, including a 1962 Black Corvette, a 1984 PPG Pace Car, the 1992 White 1 Millionth Corvette, a 1993 Ruby Red 40th Anniversary model, a 2001 Mallett Hammer Z06, and the 2009 White 1.5 Millionth Corvette.
Why It Happened Beneath the Skydome
The museum sits in an area shaped by karst topography, a landscape created by the dissolution of soluble rocks like limestone. Beneath the surface, acidic rainwater carves networks of underground passages. Over time, these voids expand until the ground above can no longer support its weight.
Jason Polk, assistant professor of geography and geology at Western Kentucky University, explained that such sinkholes are common in the region.
Assessing the Damage
The value of the lost vehicles was not immediately released. Structural engineers were brought in to assess whether recovery efforts could proceed safely. Bowling Green hosts the museum because it is home to the only Chevrolet factory that builds Corvettes, linking the site to the car’s entire production history.
The dramatic sinkhole incident drew global media attention, overshadowing even a major winter storm sweeping across the country that day.
Before dawn on February 12, 2014, alarms rang inside the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
Staff arrived to find a gaping sinkhole beneath the Skydome.
In the darkness, eight Corvettes had vanished underground, some of them priceless icons…🧵👇 pic.twitter.com/oDJ21xYPI5
— Fascinating True Stories (@FascinatingTrue) October 10, 2025