The social media is ablaze as the netizens curiously search for the Tunnel girl Kala. Now, who is she, and why is there so much of an uproar about her project? A woman named @engineer.everything on her TikTok account has been documenting her homemade storm shelter project. This involved digging beneath her house and shifting the project from a storm shelter to a tunnel system. The woman kept sharing updates about her project on social media platforms. The project was recently shut down in December 2023 after neighbours complained. This brought it to a considerable point of discussion.
Netizens began calling her Tunnel Girl because of her constant updates on the tunnel project under the house.
Did It Begin As A Storm Shelter?
She embarked on a new and complex project to create a storm shelter beneath her house. In October 2022, she took to social media to announce this project. She said this endeavour would take much time, planning, and engineering. The shelter would be located off the side of what she called her “bunker/home office”. It would start with cutting a sizable hole into some reinforced concrete blocks. There was no mention of Kala’s qualifications.
The Herculean effort entailed cutting through concrete, mining sediment, and installing an elevator shaft. The elevator shaft was to evacuate a thousand pounds of rocks at a time. Besides this, pumping out water, installing electricity and ventilation and dealing with setbacks like partial collapses and fires are part of it.
Is She A Professional Engineer?
Kala is not an engineer, nor did she study engineering in school, as she said to a source. She explained that it does not take much for her to pick up a skill. The woman said she can often learn skills just by doing it with minimal instruction. Kala claims to be an office worker by day. She speaks in a robotic monotone voice while donning fashionable outfits, heavy makeup and manicured nails as she demonstrates her highly complex and dangerous home improvement project.
Perhaps this is part of why Kala’s project has come under fire. Recently, the project was shut down in December 2023. This happened after neighbours rightfully complained. It made the tunnel a considerable point of discussion.
What Has Happened To The Project?
Kala’s project has come under fire as it was shut down in December 2023. On December 28, Kala posted a heavily-produced clip. It showed her getting a visit from city officials who shut down the big dig. They gave her a stop work order. She was even told there are requirements for an immediate evaluation by a professional engineer. In a video, she told viewers about the recent updates after the visit.
Her across-the-street neighbour expressed their concern. They seem to be worried about the lack of safety precautions she seems to be taking. They are also doubtful whether she has measured the possible impact her projects could have on her neighbour’s property.
Officials in her leafy town confirmed that they were working with her. The officials are working to correct violations and ensure the property is safe and compliant with the code. They are into it after inspectors “received notice” that she was in “potential violation of the Uniform Statewide Building Code.”
How Did The Tunnel Girl Go Viral?
Kala has kept sharing her progress on social media since the beginning of the project. She uses the handles @kalaengineer and @engineer.everything. The Tunnel Girl gradually shows her viewers the progression of a tunnel system. It leads to a “sub-basement” chamber 22 feet below ground. Part of her channel’s appeal seems rooted in her idiosyncratic presentation.
Less than a week after starting, Kala already had a ton of rock removed from the wall. Within days, she encountered her first problem, which was leakage. By November, she was 13 feet into the shelter with only a few more bumps in the road to show for it.
Conclusion
Kala began referring to the storm shelter project as the “secret tunnel under her house” in March 2023. It is unclear when she made the switch. But it was a significant update. The storm shelter had become a “tunnel system” by December 2023.
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