SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — On Thursday, a sudden sinkhole opened up on a street in the heart of Seoul, swallowing an SUV and injuring two people inside, according to emergency responders.
Images from the incident revealed a white sports utility vehicle trapped in a hole that was approximately 2½ meters (or about eight feet) deep.
The fire department in Seoul’s Seodaemun district reported that they successfully rescued the 82-year-old male driver and a 76-year-old female passenger. Fortunately, no other individuals were injured during the event, which occurred around 11:20 a.m. local time (0220 GMT).
The specifics regarding the condition of the injured individuals were not available immediately. Traffic in the Seodaemun area remained restricted into Thursday evening as officials and repair crews worked to fix the damaged road and investigate what caused the sinkhole to form.
According to South Korea’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, there were at least 879 sinkholes reported across the country between 2019 and June 2023. Nearly half of these incidents were linked to broken sewer pipes, according to information shared with lawmakers last year.
In a related incident, a 48-year-old visitor from India went missing last week in Malaysia after the pavement gave way beneath her, leading to her fall into a deep sinkhole measuring eight meters (about 26 feet). Officials indicated that she might have been carried away by an underground water flow.
