A sinkhole was formed on the busy Anna Salai near DMS subway, where the underground Teynampet Metro Rail station is coming up, on Sunday evening. Traffic had to be diverted to minimise congestion.
According to police and Metro rail staff at the site, the size of the sinkhole was increasing.
“Hence, we barricaded the stretch to prevent movement of vehicles in the area,” said an police officer.
An autorickshaw’s front wheel got stuck in the sinkhole. J. Raju, the driver, said the incident happened around 7.30 p.m. “I was taking a passenger to Kotturpuram and the front mudguard was caught in the hole. I was frightened as an MTC bus and a car were trapped in a huge crater in April,” he said. A woman travelling in the auto fell down, but was not injured. The vehicle was pulled out.
According to Metro Rail staff at the site, work on constructing a staircase and installing an elevator to reach the road from the underground station was going on. Police said the stretch, damaged due to rains, was relaid a few days ago.
Senior Chennai Metro Rail Limited officials said that the sinkhole was not caused due to Metro rail work. “The hole is away from our work site. It appears as if the depth is 1.5 metres.”
