Massive 105-foot-wide Sinkhole Abruptly Appears in Russian Field

Credit: Central European News

A massive sinkhole that appeared overnight in Russia has been labelled the 'gate to hell' by locals who are terrified that another could open up underneath their homes.

The vast hole, which is 105 ft wide and 165 ft deep, is large enough to swallow a 16 storey building.

It opened up seemingly overnight near to the village of Neledino in the Nizhny Novgorod region, which has just 111 residents.

Although no one was hurt, it is reported that children in the village are petrified by the thought of another hole opening up in the night and swallowing their homes while they sleep.

Local resident Yelena said: "The sink hole is so close to our village.
"There is no guarantee that another one will not appear right in the middle of it - or worse, under a house.

"We are very concerned indeed.

"Children have seen the hole and many are worried the same thing might suddenly happen when they are asleep at night."

Terrifying: A giant sinkhole, measuring about 32 meters wide and 50 meters deep, suddenly opened up in the middle of a field in western Russia on July 25, 2018. The sinkhole was reportedly caused by groundwater erosion. No one was hurt due to its appearance. pic.twitter.com/gMwPrFRGGO

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The giant sinkhole was found by mushroom pickers. They alerted the farmer who owned the land, who quickly called the police.

Police cordoned off the area around the potentially dangerous hole to prevent curious onlookers from getting too close.

A police spokesperson said: "The ground collapsed in an agricultural field, which belongs to a private farmer, and is only two kilometres (1.2 miles) away from nearby homes.

"Based on the information we have, this field hasn't been used for the past two years."