Hole lot of trouble for worried householder

A 10ft hole is worrying a householder in Palmer Close, Oldham.

The hole appeared almost three months ago, and despite calls to United Utilities, the council and housing association Contour, which owns the homes on the street, the cause remains a mystery.

Peter Lloyd, who lives on the Close, spotted the problem in the Tarmac on June 6.

Shining a torch down the foot- wide gap, he saw it falls away towards a drain about 10ft down and only the skin of Tarmac is left above it.

He said: “Six weeks ago, barriers were put around it.

“United Utilities also came out and did a test but said it was not a sewer collapse, so my wife rang Contour again.

“Not only is it right outside my drive, and I am struggling to get in when cars are parked across the road, someone could fall down it.

“If a car drove across it the whole thing could collapse.”

United Utilities confirmed that tests had shown their sewer was intact.

Contour Housing said it had contacted Oldham Council to report the problem to the highways department.

Councillor Mark Alcock, the council’s Cabinet member for environment and infrastructure, said: “United Utilities visited and inspected this site on August 20. Their findings showed that there is not, as was originally thought, a problem with the sewer that caused this collapse in the road.

”Council officers are now visiting Palmer Close again to run a camera down the hole.

“We hope this will uncover exactly what has caused this collapse and we are dealing with this investigation as a matter of priority.”