Sinkhole opens up on London street and swallows car

The owner of a car swallowed up by a sinkhole said he was “thankful” his family were not hurt in the incident.

The blue, seven-seater Vauxhall Zafira fell into the large crater, which opened up in Greenwich, south London, in the early hours of Thursday morning.

Ghazi Hassan told the Press Association: “In life, you have good days and bad days. This morning wasn’t a good day. But I’m thankful me or my family wasn’t in the car.”

“I’ve told the insurance. They are coming to pick it up and repair it, so that’s the positive side, and that no-one was injured.”

Residents in the leafy street said they heard a “sound like thunder” at 4am, when the large hole opened up.

The car is wedged in the hole, where it is resting on a utilities pipe. Police have warned locals they may have to be evacuated.

Mr Hassan’s brother, Abdul Ahmadzai, said: “I woke up very surprised. The police were here about 4am, so I came outside and saw the car — they said it was in a hole.

"I thought: ‘There’s nothing I can do’ and went back to sleep. I just woke up again now.”

His brother had owned the estate car for three or four years, he added.

Cleo O’Kane, 25, who lives opposite the sinkhole — which is three metres wide and at least several metres deep — said police told her some residents might have to be evacuated.

She said: “I thought it was thunder — I heard a loud bang, but it was raining so much I thought it was thunder. It must have been around 4am. I woke up and then just went back to sleep — my window was open — then woke up at six this morning, came outside, and there was a car in a hole.

“I’ve been here for eight years and have never seen anything like this happen.”

The car was parked outside Benefice of Charlton St Thomas’ Church.

Reverend Erica Wooff, the rector of Charlton, who lives next door to the church, said her initial reaction was: “Oh, my goodness, there’s a hole in the road.”

"This morning wasn't a good day": The owner of this car after a sinkhole appeared underneath their vehicle in London https://t.co/eXROe8Yg13

— Sky News (@SkyNews) May 12, 2016