06 April 2023 , 18:12
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Onlookers watched in horror as a car with two children onboard was swallowed up in a sinkhole filled with boiling hot water.
Four people were reportedly injured, including one of the two kids riding in the car, when the ground opened up on Drovyanaya Street, in St Petersburg, Russia, on April 5.
According to local reports, the sinkhole appeared after a hot water pipe ruptured and caused the soil and asphalt to collapse underneath the vehicle.
The driver and his 10-year-old son suffered burns and were sent to hospital, while the other child was reportedly left unharmed.
Local media said one of them was moved to intensive care with burns covering over 30% of his body.
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A car with two children onboard was swallowed up in a sinkhole filled with boiling hot water in St Petersburg (Newsflash)Many Russian cities have giant central heating plants that pipe superheated water to housing estates - but bursts are not uncommon in the country amid ageing infrastructure.
The Ministry of Emergency Situations said in a statement obtained by Newsflash: "Both rescuers were sent to hospital with burns to their lower extremities."
Phone footage filmed by unnamed witnesses shows a white SUV completely surrounded by the sinkhole, which was still letting off steam into the street above.
Multiple people were hospitalised after a rescue operation, with one treated for burns covering 30% of their body (Newsflash)Emergency crews can be seen gathered on the side, seemingly waiting for the heat the subside before they begin work to save the vehicle.
A total of 31 emergency personnel and 11 units of special equipment were reportedly handling the massive cleanup operation, while the street has been temporarily closed off to traffic.
The Prosecutors' Office of St Petersburg said in a statement: "The prosecutor's office of the Admiralteisky district organised an inspection into the fact of a pipeline rupture at house 4 on Drovyanaya Street, operated by St. Petersburg Heating Network JSC.
The sinkhole could still be seen letting off steam in footage shared by an eyewitness (Newsflash)"Currently, measures are being taken to clear up the site of the accident, while the causes of the breakthrough are being investigated.
"Employees of the prosecutor's office of the Admiralteisky district left for the place to coordinate the actions of emergency services and control over the elimination of the consequences of the incident."