A 20-foot-wide sink has opened onto a quiet residential street that swallows the entire road – and a passing motorcycle. Emergency services rushed to seal Martens Avenue in Bexleyheath after the asphalt receded at around 9pm on Tuesday. It remains unclear what caused the rupture on the road. Mike Stevens / Facebook Drone images show that the hole occupies the entire width of the paved road and is said to be more than 16 feet deep.
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Neighbors claimed on social media that a motorcyclist did not see the huge hole and entered the crater. Mick Stevens, 49, who lives next door, told Mail Online: “I parked on the street at 9pm and thought, ‘What the hell is this?’ “There were one or two people standing there looking at something. “Then a speeding motorcycle came and tried to jump over the hole. “He must have believed it was Evelyn Naivel or something.” Stevens added: “He fell into it with this big bike, then he got out and started shouting ‘I need a taxi, I need a taxi’ and then he ran away. “The police and the fire brigade have been here for hours.” Darren, who chose not to give his last name, said a motorcyclist had a “lucky escape” after his bike fell into the sink. He told the PA news agency: “It happened just outside my house and no one was injured as far as I know, fortunately, but the person on the bike escaped with a lucky escape. “He left the scene before the emergency services arrived. “It was quite exciting but also scary as we were told we might have to evacuate if things went well. “The road is still closed, the emergency services are gone now and only the Thames Water services are left.” The residential road remained closed to traffic and pedestrians on Wednesday. Liam Edwards, 25, who lives on Leysdown Avenue, said he heard a “huge bang” as part of a nearby street collapsed. Mr Edwards told the PA: “I was sitting on the street next door and I heard a huge bang. “I saw that there was a motorcycle in it and I talked to one of the neighbors right next door and (he said) that he had moved his truck just five minutes before, otherwise he would also be in the hole. “No one was injured, although it was a scary experience for those who lived next to him. “The whole place has no police presence now, but you could not approach it if you tried. No injuries were reported, but a motorcycle appears to be on the side inside the hole. A Scotland Yard spokesman said: “Police were called to Martens Avenue, Bexleyheath, just before 9pm on June 21 for reports of a large sinkhole. “No injuries were reported.” The London Fire Department said they were called to the 5-meter-deep sink at 9 p.m. A spokesman said: “We helped make the scene safe and the incident ended for the crews by 22.28.”
