That sinking Sheffield feeling – again

Another dangerous sinkhole has appeared on Clowyn Road, Sheffield Beach. That, while the last sinkhole that swallowed up a beach buggie along the same road is still being fixed.

Sheffield Beach resident, George Dunn, discovered the latest sinkhole at 58 Clowyn Road while walking his dogs on Friday afternoon, June 26.

“I called the KDM emergency number and they said the civils department would tend to the problem on Monday,” he said.

When the Courier arrived at the sinkhole on Monday afternoon, it had been cordoned off with red and white tape wrapped around bright orange cones and tied to a tree. There was also a lot of water around the hole and someone had also, quite thoughtfully, stuck a big branch into it to make it more visible.

Looking down the hole, one could clearly see what looked like tunnels leading deeper under ground and cracks had started forming in the surrounding tar, indicating that the road may soon collapse further.

A passing motorist said water has been leaking from here for more than a year but, amid countless reports to KDM, has never been repaired.

Environmentalist, Simon Bundy said leaking water could definitely erode the ground under the tar surface and create a sinkhole.

“Water moving underground takes sediment with it, leaving a cavity,” he said.

Bundy said the area’s geological makeup renders it vulnerable to sinkholes. The ground on which Sheffield Beach was built is unstable because there is a lot of natural under ground water movement, referring to the old Sheffield Village where buildings started to slip when the ground beneath it became too unstable.