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Herndon's TikTok 'Tunnel Girl' gets permit to continue digging
Herndon's "TikTok's tunnel girl" has finally been granted a permit to continue her work.
HERNDON, Va. - TikTok's tunnel girl has finally been granted a permit to continue her work.
The backstory:
Just over a year ago, the city of Herndon told "Kala" — on TikTok as @engineer.everything — to stop digging a tunnel under her home. On Monday, she told FOX 5 that she now has the permit to continue the work.
Some people who live in the relatively quiet neighborhood with single-family homes in Herndon say they have some concerns about this project but Kala says she’s moving forward now that the city has given her the green light.
"I paid the fee and my tunnel plans are approved. Finally," Kala said.
READ MORE: TikTok tunnel girl says project at Northern Virginia home is moving along
What She's Saying:
Kala says she’ll continue to work on the underground tunnel system that’s 22 feet below ground with a 30-foot entrance. Under her house, she says not under her neighbor's property.
After several rounds of plan submissions, Kala – also known on TikTok as the "Tunnel Girl" – shows what she says is the approval from Herndon, including floor and structural plans, along with construction specifications for what she says is a "storm shelter."
Dig deeper:
Kala now has half a million TikTok followers, who have viewed her project videos millions of times. She tells FOX 5 that an engineering assessment done by her engineer shows the structure of the tunnel is sufficient and stable.
"I feel relieved and celebratory. I felt from the beginning that we were making progress because in my first submission to the government, they cam back with 60 comments, and then I resolved those, and then they came back with 30 comments, and then they came back with 12 comments so I always felt that we were moving forward," she said following the inspection.
FOX 5 reached out to the city of Herndon. As of this writing, we have not yet heard back.