A gaping sinkhole in the middle of a South Pattaya intersection finally got covered and barriers erected around it, but only after a pickup truck fell into it.
City hall road workers finally addressed the deep, wide hole at the junction of South and Second Roads Feb. 20, a hazard locals had complained about for a while, but city officials ignored until photos of an accident went viral on the internet.
No one was hurt when the KCG Co. pickup truck drove into the sinkhole. Passersby helped pull the vehicle from the maw of the hungry road.
Neighbors said they knew enough to drive slowly and avoid the hole as they waited for city hall to act. The sinkhole likely was caused by a leaking water main, which eroded the soil underneath the road.
Pattaya’s chronic flooding undoubtedly played a role, too, they said.