DELTONA, Fla. -- A 225-foot sinkhole that forced the evacuation of 20 homes after it swallowed a $5 million roadway and nearby property is continuing to grow Monday and cause problems for workers and motorists in Deltona, Fla., according to Local 6 News.

Officials estimate it would take 100,000 dump trucks to fill the cavity with dirt, according to WKMG Local 6 News reporter Jessica Sanchez.

About 25,000 daily drivers will be forced to find alternate routes to work and school beginning Dec. 20 to avoid the hole on Howland Boulevard, Local 6 News reported.

---

Click here for more sinkhole images

---

Monday, county engineers plan to drill holes around the cavity to discern how large the hole may eventually grow but one estimate has the pit growing to nearly 400-feet before settling, according to Local 6 News. Engineers estimate that the hole could take a week before it stops growing.

"It could be every bit of 300 to 350 in diameter before it's all said and done," said Deputy Fire Chief Robert Rogers. "In our area we haven't had anything like this before."

He expects the size to rival a Winter Park sinkhole that opened up 23 miles away in neighboring Orange County in 1981.

Utility workers worked through the weekend to reroute power around major electrical lines in the area.

Now, officials in Volusia County are looking into constructing a temporary road with a different route to accommodate traffic, especially when nearby Deltona High School comes back from holiday break.

County officials are also addressing concerns by neighbors who are upset that they weren't given more notice to pack up their belongings and evacuate.

"There was no test and no indication from our experts that we had a cavity of this size," Volusia County spokesman Dave Byron said. "Had we known that we would've taken the precautions for the residents and other things we could've done as well. This caught us totally by surprise."

Officials said there will be no quick fix to the sinkhole, and it will more than likely take many weeks before a solution is found, Local 6 News reported. They are forced to wait for the whole to stabilize before activating a plan of action.

Experts estimate it would take 1 million cubic yards of dirt to fill the hole, the equivalent of 100,000 dump truck loads. As it stands, trucks are not allowed to approach the unstable edge.

Engineers said the massive widening of the sinkhole was an after effect of the summer's hurricanes and not from recent road work.

"Three hurricanes and now this," said neighbor Jimmy Hernandez. "What's next? Is it going to snow?"

Sinkholes form when erosion forms underground caverns that collapse when the dome cracks opens. About 500 mostly small sinkholes open up each year in Florida.

The Volusia County forecast called for freezing temperatures but no precipitation.

Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.