San Rafael Waterfall, the largest in Ecuador, has seemingly disappeared after a sinkhole swallowed a part of its water source, CNN reported.
NASA reported that the water dropped 150 feet into a crater-like opening on the other side.
San Rafael Waterfall is a popular tourist attraction drawing tens of thousands of annual visitors. Unfortunately, the iconic water body form has disappeared and replaced by three streams. Daily Mail said that a large sinkhole opened up underneath the river that fed the falls.
As a result, tourism sites were shut and it is no longer featured on Ecuador's official travel site.
Why did the Ecaudor's Waterfall disappear?
According to the Ministry of the Environment (MOE), the waterfall started to slowly disappear in early February.
Experts at the MOE which inspected the site said: "possible undermining of the river's path, prior to the fall of the waterfall."
They aren't, however, unable to show a concrete explanation for the disappearance. Experts are still studying whether it is caused by hydro plant construction on the river that could possibly opened upstream in 2016 or merely a natural phenomenon.
Is There Any Plan To Reconstruct?
NASA said that The Ministry of Tourism does not plan to reconstruct Ecuador's Waterfall.
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