Nataly
This weekend the ground under the busy intersection in Fukuoka, Japan, subsided again for about seven centimeters, enough to stop the traffic. However, later the road has been opened again, Joinfo.com reports.
It was the second time this month that the road intersection was closed. On November 8, a fifteen-meter deep hole suddenly opened and swallowed the five lane road. It started with two smaller sinkholes, which merged into one. The resulting hole was 27 meters wide and 30 meters long. The crater filled quickly with water that seeped from the broken sewer pipes.
But, the problem seemed to be solved quickly. After only two days the sinkhole was repaired. The road workers had been working day and night. Exactly one week after the crater formed, the road was opened. The mayor, Soichiro Takashima, said that the ground under the asphalt is thirty times stronger.
Yet later the road started sinking again. Apparently, the sand and cement in the hole were settling to the place. The mayor has posted his apologies on Facebook, saying that he had not warned residents that the earth could sink a little.
Image: AP.
