Shropshire canal: Terrifying moment enormous sinkhole opens, swallows narrow boats in England’s West Midlands
A British man has captured the terrifying moment a sinkhole opened in a canal on the England-Wales border, leaving boats stranded or teetering on the edge of a twelve-foot drop.
A major incident was declared on Monday after a “significant breach” on the Shropshire Union Canal in Chemistry, Whitchurch, unfolded around 4.20am.
Two boats were swallowed by the sinkhole, which is estimated to be 50m by 50m in width, while a third was left dangling on the outskirts of the hole.
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While there are no reported casualties, around a dozen residents had to be evacuated.
Paul Stowe, who gave up his house to live on a narrow boat with his partner Anthony, narrowly escaped catastrophe when they were awoken by a loud crashing sound.
“At twenty past four this morning (Monday), there was a big crash, things were falling out of cupboards, stuff was sliding across the floor. Obviously, we knew something was going on,” he said in a video that was posted to his YouTube channel.
“We got off the boat....we walked down to see the breach and were quite shocked to see a boat at the bottom of the hole, about twelve feet down, maybe more.”
Thankfully, the man who owns the boat that sank to the bottom heard the noise and got off in time before disaster struck.
“That is so scary, I’m just glad the guy was able to get off his boat,” Mr Stowe said.
His partner, Anthony, described the scenes as “horrific”.
“It’s people’s homes. It’s just terrible....at least we still have our boats, I feel heartbroken for those that lost theirs.”
Dramatic video captured by Mr Stowe shows a boat plunging into a hole while the sound of cracking wood is heard.
He also shared extraordinary drone footage that reveals the enormity of the sinkhole.
Watch the full video below.
The British Canal and River Trust said it had dammed off the impacted section of the canal and had closed off the area to the general public while an investigation was carried out into the cause of the breach.
The trust said it was also providing support to people who had been impacted.
