Water bosses apologise after Kirkby road forced to close following reports of a sink hole

Water services firm Severn Trent has been carrying out sewer repairs on Clumber Street, after residents reported a sinkhole had opened in the road.

A Seven Trent spokeswoman said the work has been completed and the firm was ‘working to get the road back to normal and safe again’.

She said: “We’re sorry for any inconvenience caused by our essential sewer repairs on Clumber Street.

“We’re pleased to say the repairs have been completed and now our teams will be working to put the road back to normal.

“We’re sorry for the disruption caused and it will be our priority to ensure the road is open and safe again to be used as quickly as possible.”

A sink hole is a depression or hole in the ground caused by a collapse of the surface layer.

Dr Clive Edmonds, a geotechnical specialist who has studied sinkholes for more than 30 years, says the cause is nearly always water.

He told the Institution of Civil Engineers: “In 90 per cent of sinkhole cases, water saturating the ground is the main trigger.

“Sinkholes happen when a layer of rock underneath the ground is dissolved by water.

“Sinkholes depend on geology, some rocks are more soluble than others – salt deposits for instance dissolve more quickly.

“Human development can contribute greatly, especially construction work in urban areas where you may have dense development with roadworks etc. The surface becomes impermeable with water collecting over time in drains and sewers - water starts leaking into the ground.”

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