It's not just America that is seeing the phenomenon of sinkholes like the one in Lousiana

World still grappling with epidemic of sinkholes: Chinese village suffers over 20 sinkholes in five months

MSN,

14 January, 2012

Residents in the village of Lianyuan in southern China's Hunan Province have been treading rather gingerly these last few months.

Over 20 sinkholes have opened up in the ground since last September.

The cave-ins, which range in size, have seen houses collapse and rivers run dry. And there is never any warning as to where and when the sinkhole occur.

According to local authorities, the main reason for the cave-ins is the number of coalmines in the area.

It is not clear what steps are being taken to prevent further sinkholes from appearing

Here is one in Brazil