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Man accidentally drives car into sinkhole, thinking it's just a puddle

Posted at 5:44 AM, May 26, 2017
and last updated 2017-05-26 21:37:24-04

DENVER – A man drove his car directly into a sinkhole caused by a broken water main early Friday.

Since it had rained overnight, the driver said he saw water in the road near 13th and Tennyson in Denver and thought it was just a puddle. The car ended up head-first in a six-foot-deep sinkhole.

The driver, who works for Uber, did not have any passengers with him at the time. He was able to get out of the car on the passenger side.

A tow truck pulled the car out and hauled it away.

Utility crews said the sinkhole was caused by a rupture in a 12-inch water main. 12 nearby homes lost water due to the rupture and crews were working to replace the broken section of pipe.

"It looked like the whole road was going to cave in," said nearby resident Lucas Pollock.  "We saw the back half of the car; the front half was completely in the road," he said.

Denver Water tells Denver7 the massive hole in the street is giving them a better window into the conditions of the pipe in the neighborhood near Sloan’s Lake, helping the utility to make future plans that could impact your neighborhood.

"This is our opportunity to actually see these pipes that are buried underneath the ground. We haven't been able to see this pipe since 1950. So it allows us to inform future decision on where to best strategically do our proactive programs in the future," said spokesman Travis Thompson.

The sinkhole had been repaired by 2:30 p.m. and the road reopened.