Residents forced to evacuated their homes after a huge sinkhole appeared on their street in south Wales may not be able to return in time for Christmas.
Around 30 homes were evacuated in a quiet cul-de-sac in Merthyr Tydfil on Sunday after a culvert – a structure allowing water to flow underneath roads and railways – collapsed on Sunday with dramatic consequences.
The pit, in the village of Pant, has since continued to expand, with further cracks appearing in the road surface, the local council leader has said.
“It seems to be getting bigger, there’s more cracks coming across the road and into walls and gardens,” said Brent Carter, the council leader in Merthyr Tydfil.
He added: “What appears to be the cause is we had two landslides further up the mountain, which has caused stone to come down and come crashing straight through the culvert and obviously collapse the arch in Nant Morlais.”
While Mr Carter said he hoped residents would be back in their homes by Christmas, he said he could not give a timeline for how long it would take for remediation works to be completed.
Mr Carter said the council hopes to block off the water and then the culvert could be inspected and remediation work can be completed.
John Mitchell, a 76-year-old whose home sits near the edge of the sinkhole, said: “It is frightening, you don’t know what will happen with the water going under there and washing everything away.
“I came home and the whole of the bit there was barricaded off, and the hole just gradually got worse and worse as it was opening up.
“I couldn’t see down to the bottom, but it was a good depth, it was really quite deep.”
Mr Mitchell and his wife have been put up in a hotel and he said they would have to “wait and see how everything unfolds”, but he hoped his home would be safe.
He said he had been aware of the Morlias stream, which runs under the street and gives it its name, Nant Morlais, having walked through it as a child.
Stephen Regan told the BBC that he feared he could lose his home, which is positioned right next to the sinkhole.
“It was very scary, you could hear it rumbling and collapsing when it was happening,” the 55-year-old said. “I just want to get back in the house but we don’t know what the situation is at the moment. My fear is my house could go ... I’ve never seen anything like this in my life.”
He estimated the hole was up to 60ft deep, adding: “The culvert has collapsed and water has just washed it all away. It’s an older generation on this street so they are scared.”
Thanking evacuated residents for their understanding, Mr Carter said: “Yesterday, we were trying to get people out of their homes and into temporary accommodation – to pack a bag all within 15 minutes’ notice, it’s traumatic, I’ve got every sympathy for them, it’s a terrible time.
“Our team and the officers of the council, as well as external agencies, are moving heaven and earth to ensure everything is put back into place as soon as possible, but obviously safety is paramount.”
Concerns about the culvert have been raised in the past and he said it is inspected every two years to try to ensure something like this does not happen – but more frequent inspections may be considered going forward.
Additional reporting by PA
