Rescue workers in Japan say it could be three months before they recover a body of a truck driver whose vehicle has been stuck in a giant sinkhole for more than two weeks.
The 74-year-old's truck plunged into the now 40-metre wide sinkhole, which opened up during rush hour in the city of Yashio, near Tokyo, on January 28.
Photos taken by a drone showed what appeared to be a person inside the truck, which is now lodged in a sewer pipe, authorities said.
"They said there's a cabin of a truck in the photos and they can't rule out the possibility that what appears to be inside is a person," local fire department official Tomonori Nakazawa said.
Rescuers say it could take up to three months to get into the sinkhole as they build a temporary sewage pipe to bypass the sinkhole.
Why is it taking so long?
The fire department announced on Tuesday that rescue efforts had been suspended due to water flow and high levels of hydrogen sulphide gas.
Koichi Yamamoto, an official with Yashio's fire department, said a "substantial" amount of sewage water had accumulated at the site, eroding the surrounding soil and "constantly flowing in like a river".
"This makes it impossible for us to proceed," he said.
Cranes have been sent to the site and a 30-metre slope built to locate and reach the driver, with a second slope under construction, but progress has been slow and dangerous.
Around 1.2 million locals have been asked to temporarily cut back on showers and laundry to prevent leaking sewage from hindering the operation.
How common are sinkholes in Japan?
More than 10,000 sinkholes opened up in Japan in 2022, according to figures cited by the AFP news agency.
Many are caused by collapsing sewers in urban areas.
In 2016, a giant sinkhole around 30-metres wide and 15-metres deep appeared on a busy street in Fukuoka city.
In that case the sinkhole was triggered by nearby subway construction. No-one was hurt and the street reopened a week after workers toiled around the clock.
ABC/AFP
