Kala (TikToker)
Kala (born 1985 or 1986) is an American TikToker known for her content surrounding the excavation of a tunnel under her house,[1] which has earned her the nickname "Tunnel Girl".[2]
Biography[edit]
Kala studied business and finance in college.[1] After graduating, she entered the information technology field as a software engineer.[1][3]
She bought a two-story home in Herndon, Virginia in 2010.[3][4] She previously built a two-story addition at the back of her house, with a basement and subbasement underneath.[1][3]
Tunnel construction[edit]
In August 2022, Kala began construction on a storm shelter in her basement.[5] To prepare, she studied FEMA shelter guidelines and a civil engineering book titled Rock Mass Classification — A Practical Approach in Civil Engineering.[1] She began posting to TikTok about her tunnel construction in October 2022, telling viewers she was undertaking the project to challenge herself.[1][6]
Kala's followers initially consisted primarily of electricians and mining and civil engineers.[1]
In the course of excavating under her home, Kala also found building stones, which she began to mine and save for later projects.[1] By August 2023, Kala had begun referring to the project as an "underground tunnel system",[6] and had built a makeshift elevator to remove rock and dirt from the tunnel.[3] Around the same time, her content had begun to reach more users, who expressed concerns about the safety and legality of her project.[6]
By November 2023, she had accumulated 330,000 TikTok followers.[1] At the time, she said she had spent about $50,000 on the project.[1] Although Kala had undertaken the majority of work herself, her friends also occasionally helped.[1]
On December 7, 2023, the tunnel was inspected by local building authorities[4] and declared unsafe, and Kala was told to vacate her home until an engineer could evaluate the structure.[7] In late December, concern continued to spread online regarding whether the tunnel could negatively impact Kala's neighbors.[6] On December 31, Kala announced on her TikTok that city officials had told her to halt construction.[6] She reassured her viewers that she would cooperate with a mandatory evaluation by an engineer, and would continue to pursue proper permitting.[6] At the time, she had more than 500,000 followers.[4]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Tolentino, Daysia (2023-11-14). "This woman is building a tunnel under her house and documenting it. TikTok users have questions". NBC News. Retrieved 2024-01-06.
- ^ Holpuch, Amanda (2024-01-18). "The TikTok 'Tunnel Girl' Is Not Alone". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-01-25.
- ^ a b c d Olivo, Antonio (2024-01-04). "'Tunnel girl' gets heart emojis, sneers over mining project beneath Va. home". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2024-01-06.
- ^ a b c Zheng, Lili (2024-01-02). "Virginia officials inspect TikTok tunnel girl's viral project". FOX 5 DC. Retrieved 2024-01-06.
- ^ Shouse, Meghan (2023-10-13). "Why Is This Woman Building a Secret Tunnel System Under Her Home?". House Beautiful. Retrieved 2024-01-06.
- ^ a b c d e f Bergman, Sirena. "How Tunnel Girl's DIY storm shelter took over TikTok — then turned people against her". Business Insider. Retrieved 2024-01-06.
- ^ Morales, Alise (2024-01-05). "Let's Dig (Back) Into the TikTok Tunnel Girl Drama". Jezebel. Retrieved 2024-01-25.