4.30pm, Thursday

A SPOKESWOMAN from Worcestershire County Council says Severn Trent Water has organised a camera survey to investigate whether there is a problem with the sewer. 

It is not yet known when the survey will happen and the road will remain cordoned off in the meantime.

10am Thursday

A SINKHOLE in a Worcester road is still cordoned off today. 

The road is down to one lane because of the small hole which opened up in Love's Grove yesterday.

Original story

POLICE have blocked off a Worcester road to traffic. 

An eyewitness said a "small sinkhole" could be seen in the road at Love's Grove, Worcester.

The road is adjacent to Castle Street police station.

Police attended and cordoned off one side of the road at about 2pm this afternoon.

Highways officers from Worcestershire County Council have inspected the road and said the likely cause is a collapsed sewer.

A spokesman said: "Severn Trent have been contacted but we are ensuring it's safe for now."

One local resident said his car had hit the sinkhole and may even have been the cause of its collapse.

He said: "I was just turning into the road and I felt the back wheel go down, I had to race the engine to pull it out.

"I hadn't seen the hole when I made the turn, so I think the weight of my car might have caused it."

He said the sinkhole had damaged the wheel arch of his BMW, and possibly damage the wheel as well.   

A West Mercia Police spokesman said they were called today at 1.30pm by a member of the public concerned about the hole.

He said: "They said, it looks like the road is sinking underneath."

He added officers had blocked off the road, although traffic is still able to use one lane, and had reported the problem to Worcestershire County Council's Highways department.

Even small sinkholes can prove difficult to repair - one in busy Brickfields Road last year took the best part of two days to repair, causing traffic chaos for commuters.

Further updates to follow.

Sinkhole or pothole – what’s the difference?

To the untrained eye, sinkholes and potholes can appear the same – but there is a fundamental difference.

Essentially, potholes push up, whereas sinkholes cave in.

Potholes begin with cracks in the road’s surface, often caused by the weather or general wear and tear.

Traffic then puts pressure on the crack, making it more vulnerable.

Sinkholes, on the other hand, start with underground erosion, forming a cave.

Eventually, the ground collapses and a hole appears.

Potholes are fixed simply by filling them in.

Sinkholes must be corrected to ensure it does not happen again, before the surface above can be rebuilt.