Warsop resident fears street may 'collapse' after two sink holes open up

The first hole in Hammerwater Drive was given ‘sinkhole’ status by Via East Midlands, who manage the area's highways on behalf of Nottinghamshire County Council, after it appeared just before Christmas.

A second, even larger sink hole opened up this month, prompting numerous reports from residents who say they are concerned that both Severn Trent Water and Via seem to be ‘taking their time’ over who needs to take responsibility for repairs.

Darren Oxley, whose house is just a few metres from the largest of the two holes, said: “I’m worried the road is going to collapse. There are two more dips which have appeared further down the road between these two holes, so we are all now wondering whether it is a much bigger problem.

“There are lots of children who play on the street, and its only a matter of time before this falls in on itself and someone gets hurt.”

The hole underneath the surface is about one square metre and 80 centimetres deep, and is surrounded by cracks – at some points the tarmac is only millimetres thick.

It is feared that more holes may be due to appear further down the street, due to two dips in the road which have given residents cause for concern.

David Lavender from Severn Trent said: “We’ve sent our engineers out to investigate reports of two sinkholes on Hammerwater Drive, to see whether it’s anything to do with our network.

“The initial results are unclear so we’ll be back out again to follow it up.”

Johnny Davis on behalf of Nottinghamshire County Council said: “We undertook an inspection on Hammerwater Drive, Warsop on December 23 and January 9 after receiving reports of a possible sinkhole.

“Our inspectors attended and made the sites safe, reporting the issue to Severn Trent Water.

“Severn Trent Water are investigating the matter and we are awaiting an update from them regarding the issue.”