Bangkok road collapses near hospital, 50-meter-wide sinkhole emerges

(Web Desk): A section of a busy road collapsed in Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, on Wednesday morning, creating a deep sinkhole in front of a major hospital and forcing nearby residents to evacuate.

According to AFP, the incident occurred in a residential area outside a local police station and Vajira Hospital, where a sinkhole approximately 50 meters (160 feet) wide appeared. The collapse damaged power lines and caused water to gush out from a burst pipe. Eyewitnesses reported a pickup truck dangerously hanging on the edge of the crater.

Suriyachai Raewwan, director of Bangkok’s Disaster Prevention Department, stated that the likely cause of the collapse was recent heavy rainfall combined with a leaking pipe, which eroded the soil beneath the road. The loosened soil eventually fell into an under-construction metro station, causing the ground above to give way.

The tunnel is part of a project being built by Thailand’s Mass Rapid Transit Authority, which has launched an investigation into the incident. The police station in front of the collapsed area has been evacuated, and orders have been issued to evacuate nearby apartment buildings as well.

Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt said, “The location is near a station, and the soil was pulled inward, which led to the collapse.” A video verified by AFP and widely shared on social media shows cracks suddenly appearing in the road before it collapses, revealing a large, water-filled pit.

Vajira Teaching Hospital, affiliated with a major Thai medical university, announced on Facebook that outpatient (OPD) services have been temporarily suspended and will resume once the situation improves.

Nopphadit Pitpeng, a 27-year-old hospital staff member, said he woke up to a loud explosion-like sound on Wednesday morning. “It sounded just like an electric pole had fallen, and my entire flat shook,” he said.