Huge 20ft sinkhole opens up on M62

M62 motorway Saddleworth Moor West Yorkshire with safety markings on lanes to warn drivers to keep two chevrons apart UK
M62 motorway Saddleworth Moor West Yorkshire with safety markings on lanes to warn drivers to keep two chevrons apart UK



A 20ft sinkhole closed the M62 over Christmas after the huge hole opened up between junctions 20 to 10 westbound.

The M62 reopened on Boxing Day after road crews worked at the site for 10 hours, Manchester Evening News reports.

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It is believed the sinkhole was caused by a change in temperature and the extreme weather in the North of England, which saw heavy rain and flooding.

A Highways Agency spokesman said: "When the road surface experiences rainfall like we've had even a slight change in temperature can cause weakness in the road surface."

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The Yorkshire Evening Post reports that the Highway Agency described it as a pothole rather than a sinkhole and said the problem was the road's surface.

A historic pub in Greater Manchester was also destroyed by flooding caused by the swollen River Irwell.

The Waterside, which straddles a bridge over the river, collapsed into the water on Boxing Day morning.

A drone captured part of the 200-year-old building crashing into the river and disappearing.

Local resident Adrian Costello, 32, told Manchester Evening News that he was about to walk over the bridge when the two-storey pub came down.

"I turned to my left and watched The Waterside crumble into the river from being fully intact to disintegrating in front of my eyes. It was like a scene from a film. It was gone in a few seconds. There was dust everywhere."

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