- A silver Ram and a red Jeep dropped through the road at a red light.
- Authorities say an underground water leak likely caused the sinkhole.
- A major water main burst when the two vehicles crashed down.
Few driving scenarios are more unsettling than the road vanishing without so much as a warning sign. That is exactly what happened earlier this week in Omaha, Nebraska, where two motorists were sitting at an intersection when a sinkhole suddenly opened beneath them.
Security camera footage from the nearby University of Nebraska-Omaha shows a silver Ram pickup and a dark red Jeep stopped at a red light when, without any visible warning, the earth opens up beneath them.
Watch: Thirsty Sinkhole Downs An Entire Truck Of Mexican Soda
The clip shows the sinkhole forming in an almost perfect square beneath the two vehicles. It did not open up as wide as some other sinkholes, including one we recently saw in China, but it was deep enough to swallow the entire Jeep and most of the pickup.
Eyewitnesses quickly helped the occupants of both the Ram and the Jeep climb out uninjured. Emergency crews later arrived at the scene, and a tow truck was called to extract both vehicles.
According to Omaha City engineer Austin Rowser, the sinkhole likely formed because of a pressurized underground water leak. He added, “Ultimately, it comes down to erosion because all pavement, as you know, is not built to stand on its own. It has to have the support from the soil underneath it.”
Local media report that the force of the concrete and the two vehicles dropping into the ground damaged a water main, prompting authorities to close this section of the road. Officials have warned that the sinkhole could still expand, but as of Wednesday evening, it had not.
Fortunately, no one was injured. Both vehicles, however, sustained damage. Their owners will now have the unenviable task of explaining to their insurers how their cars ended up at the bottom of a sudden hole in the road.
