Another sinkhole has appeared on Oxford Road, Rosebank, on Tuesday morning, forcing the closure of the busy road, Bombela Civils Joint Venture said.
Spokesperson Kelebogile Machaka said the sinkhole had appeared on the on the northbound lane between Riviera Road and 8th Avenue.
He said the sinkhole — approximately two metres wide and a metre deep — had swallowed a Nissan van, belonging to a Bombela employee, at about 7.30am. No one was in the vehicle at the time and no injuries were reported. The van was later towed out of the hole.
”Gautrain tunnelling activities in this area were completed in September 2008,” Machaka said.
”Due to the close proximity of our site [an emergency shaft) Bombela assisted in closing off the road and stabilising the exposed utilities in the interests of the public.”
”Traffic flow from the area is being diverted in order to allow the City of Johannesburg and utility owners to conduct investigations to determine the cause of the incident.”
Motorists could use 8th Avenue, Main Road and Riviera Road as alternative routes, said Johannesburg metro police spokesperson Superintendent Wayne Minnaar.
Another sinkhole — roughly eight metres by 12 metres — appeared on Oxford Road in July, and Bombela was instructed to cease excavations. This hole took about eight weeks to repair. – Sapa