A Manchester Memorial Hospital spokesperson said all emergency room traffic is being directed to an alternate driveway after a sizeable sinkhole opened up near the main ER driveway on Sunday.
Manchester town officials are evaluating the situation that nearly swallowed up a fire engine.
The hole, estimated between eight and 10 feet deep, developed at the intersection of Guard and Armory streets, which is the access point to the hospital’s emergency room driveway.
The cavity appeared Sunday afternoon, opening up just after a Manchester fire engine was making a routine visit to the hospital.
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“The fact that the road was ready to go and didn’t go when we were on top of it, but after we passed over it was a minor miracle,” Manchester Fire Chief Dan French said.
French said the truck is extremely heavy, carrying 750 gallons of water, and two firefighters on board.
“They looked into the rearview mirror and saw that part of the road had collapsed. A substantial amount of the road. About 20’ x 25,’” he said.
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One woman who lives only yards away saw it all happen.
“The firetruck pulled in. The driver looked at the hole, and I see that the other side of the road starts sinking, and I tell him move out of the way,” Debasmita Das said.
Das said the road looked like a sponge before collapsing, and that the truck moved past the area not a moment too soon.
“As soon as he moved out, if he was like a second late, then the fire truck would’ve been in the hole,” she said.
The sinkhole swallowed up asphalt, as the foundation vanished beneath it. Manchester town officials said they believe an old pipe, connected to a manhole, failed but the exact cause is yet to be determined.
“Until we get in there and uncover some of those pipes, we are not going to know exactly what happened,” Manchester Director of Public Works Tim Bockus said.
With Monday’s rain, repairs are on hold and the area is expected to be closed to through traffic for at least a few days.
