A large sinkhole near a construction site swallowed two cars and a minivan in east China this week.
CCTV footage captured the exact moment a 3-metre-deep hole opened without warning near flood prevention works in the city of Hangzhou, rapidly pulling the vehicles into it.
No casualties were reported in the incident, which happened just after 4am on 19 May. The vehicles had to be pulled out with a crane later that morning.
The government of the city’s Lin’an district halted construction and ordered the company to repair damaged underground pipes, reports The Daily Mail, citing China Central Television (CCTV).
Reports said the company was installing a large drainage pipe in a trench.
Witnesses suggested heavy rain had softened the soil around the site, but the Lin’an government blamed over-digging of the trench.
The company must now compensate the car owners for the damages, said reports.
Sinkholes make the news with some frequency in China, which has seen a sustained infrastructure boom to accommodate rapid urbanisation.
While startling for the drivers, this one was minor compared to a 2013 collapse that saw six shops swallowed up by a 100-sq-m hole in Guangzhou.
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This is a trench collapse and not a sinkhole. The 2 are very different and in this case it is clearly attributable to poor excavation practices by the contractor.
Do they not do proper soil testing – load bearing tests?
It does not appear a sink hole but an excavated site by virtue of a neatly cut road, but with no proper shoring which led to ground collapse. Correct if my view is incorrect.