Huge sinkhole becomes tourist attraction in Manchester after sewer collapse
Collapsed sewer is blamed for gaping hole on Heywood Road
Residents in Greater Manchester are up in arms over a huge sinkhole that appeared suddenly on a busy road, bringing traffic to a standstill.
The gaping chasm, roughly 6m wide, appeared when part of Heywood Road, Prestwich, gave way on Monday following heavy rain.
Some locals used their wheelie bins to warn drivers of the huge chasm, but pictures shared online showed the receptacles ended up being subsumed by the growing hole.
Emergency services scrambled to the scene and secured the area with a perimeter but ensure the safety of drivers and pedestrians.
“Fed-up” locals, however, reacted furiously, saying it wasn’t the first time a sinkhole had appeared in the area and affected traffic on the road, where properties sell for around £300,000.
“This has happened quite a few times, further up,” one resident said. “Neighbours are sick and fed up with it.”
“Even though it’s a residential area, this is like a main road. Cars drive too fast and the council are doing nothing to slow traffic down.”
The resident added: “I heard when this started going because I could hear the undersides of cars being hit.
“I phoned Bury Council and the police and put some bins around it. It was when I went back to take a picture that I saw the bins sinking.
“We had to get people’s attention, so the bins have been put out by residents and someone who works in construction nearby got the tape.”
The sinkhole created a stir in the local area and pictures of it were shared on the So Prestwich community news Twitter page.
Images showed people standing on the side of the road near the sinkhole, looking into the tarmac-eating abyss.
“Heywood Rd has collapsed!” the group said in a tweet. “Thankfully no one was hurt, but avoid the area!”
A local councillor blamed the water company serving the area for the sinkhole and called on the government to provide more money for road maintenance.
Cllr Alan Quinn, cabinet member for the environment, climate change and operations on Bury Council, said that Prestwich was “built on sand”, meaning leaks can wash the sand away, creating sinkholes.
“We have had a few in the area, the last one was at the junction,” he said. “We have just had this superstorm and United Utilities are stretched because of global warming.”
Heywood Road was last hit by a sinkhole in October 2016 that was also believed to have been caused by a collapsed sewer.
Greater Manchester Police officers covering the area urged motorists to avoid the road for “the next week or so. Big sinkhole one of our night sgts is looking into”.
Bury Council said the sinkhole was caused by a collapsed sewer.
A spokesperson for United Utilities said its engineers would attend the sinkhole to investigate what happened.
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