Giant sinkhole found in Vietnam street

[BalanceOfPower]

Giant sinkhole found in Vietnam street

Last updated: Saturday, November 23, 2013 20:30

A sinkhole found in Ho Chi Minh City on November 22 / PHOTO COURTESY OF TUOI TRE

A sinkhole measuring five meters long and over three meters deep was discovered in a street in Ho Chi Minh City on Friday, but no accidents were reported.

When checking and repairing drainage along An Duong Vuong Street in District 5, workers with the HCMC Urban Drainage Company found an underground hole which could have swallowed some 10 square meters of the street, Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper reported.

At that position that same day the street’s surface started sinking, locals told online newspaper Dan Tri.

The workers dug up the stretch of street containing the sinkhole, which was two meters wide, according to Tuoi Tre.

As water flew from the hole, it continuously expanded, the newspaper said.

An unnamed worker was quoted as saying that the sewer, which dates back to the French colonial period (1884-1945), was so old that many parts of it broke and leaked water.

The water swept away soil under the street and finally created a hole, he explained.

The HCMC Urban Drainage Company replaced the broken part of the sewer that same day, Tuoi Tre reported.