UNITED Utilities engineers are set to start repairs on a sinkhole which has appeared in a Wirral street.
Householders in Ballard Road, Newton, awoke to find the cavity had opened in the middle of the road.
It was filled in by contractors on the council's behalf but re-appeared within days.
United Utilities engineers are set to start work in the coming days.
Preparations to repair the hole in Ballard Road
The road is open to motorists, but residents are concerned about the cause and delays to repairs.
George Bergen, who has lived in nearby Springfield Road since 1965, told the Globe: "It was reported more than a week ago and was filled in. It's the first time anything like this has appeared in the road.
"No-one really knows what could have caused this but people do have their theories.
"I think there are a lot of underground springs around here with the area being farmland. Perhaps one of those has opened up."
Preparations to repair the hole in Ballard Road
A United Utilities spokesman said: “We went out to investigate this hole in the road on Wednesday and we did a camera survey along the sewer.
“We believe the sewer has collapsed so we will need to dig down and repair it.
“That will involve closing off part of the road to work safely so we have asked the council for permission to use temporary traffic lights.
“We’ll start the work when we get their permission.
“We’ll have a better idea of the duration of the work once we get started on the work.”
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