People who have been evacuated from homes perched precariously close to a large – and growing – sinkhole in south Wales that appeared in the wake of Storm Bert fear they may not get back by Christmas.
The sinkhole opened up in a cul-de-sac in the village of Pant, Merthyr Tydfil after the collapse of a culvert, a structure that allows water to flow under roads and railways, and led to residents from 29 homes being told to flee.
It has continued to expand, with further cracks appearing in the surface of the street, Nant Morlais, and in walls and gardens. Merthyr Tydfil county borough council says it hopes people will be allowed back for Christmas but its engineers have not been able to fully inspect the damage and cannot give a timeline for a return.
The arrival of the sinkhole was heralded by rumblings and bangs heard by three separate households as Storm Bert raged over the weekend of 23 and 24 November, but residents mistook it for thunder.
The council believes this was the sound of the hole starting to develop but it took almost a week to “migrate” to the surface. At the start of the weekend it was only about 30cm (1ft wide) – the size of a cushion, according to one resident – but now measures about 5 metres (16ft) wide and up to 12 metres (39ft) deep,
The hole has been fenced off but even from several metres away the sound of water gushing through the bottom of the hole can be heard clearly.
John Mitchell, 76, whose home is close to 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.”
Mitchell, who has been put up in a hotel, said he had been aware of the stream that ran under the street – Nant means stream in Welsh – having walked through it as a child. Many residents have lived in the street since it was built in the 1990s, but it is believed the people in the bungalow closest to the hole have only recently moved in.
Brent Carter, the leader of the council, said: “It seems to be getting bigger. There’s more cracks coming across the road and into walls and gardens.
“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.”
Carter said he hoped residents would be back in their homes by Christmas but he could not give a timeline for how long it would take for remediation works to be completed.
Carter said: “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.”
