Broken pipes cause sinkhole in street

The sinkhole opening on a street that devoured a taxi on Friday was caused by broken sewage pipes, Shanghai Road Administration Bureau said on Saturday.

The bureau workers excavated the entire street, Yunling Road W. in Putuo District where the incident took place, around midnight on Friday for an examination.

Water oozing or leaking from the broken pipes washed away the earth down the foundation of the street and in this case left a hole down the surface of the road, according to the bureau.

The reparation work started on Saturday, the bureau said.

A taxi plunged into the ground when passing the part of the street near Zhenbei Road on the early morning of Friday.

The driver had broken bones but didn't suffer critical injuries, and there were no passenger in his car at the time of the incident.