Huge hole opens up in Beijing road  

北京朝阳区路面塌陷现深坑 约300户居民家中停水

A road collapse occurs near a road crossing at Chaoyang district of Beijing on the afternoon of Sunday. The hole, with a diameter of about five meters and depth of five meters, interrupted traffic in the neighborhood. (Photo source: Beijing Times)

Residents are taking water from an emergency water tender dispatched by the Beijing Waterworks Group to the accident spot. (Photo source: Beijing Times)

(ECNS) -- A large area of road collapsed Sunday afternoon at a junction located in Beijing's Chaoyang District, the Beijing Times reported on Monday.

Five meters wide and five meters deep, the pit appeared at the intersection of Tianshuiyuan Road and Shuiduizi East Street.

Water erupted from a manhole at the junction and flooded the road before the area near the manhole collapsed, said a witness named Mrs Zhou.

"The pit was filled with water," she added.

The collapse was caused by improper underground construction initiated by the city's municipal government, according to a maintenance worker.

"We will replace the broken water pipelines with new ones," said the worker.

The water supply for nearly 300 households in a nearby residential community was affected by the accident.

Emergency water was dispatched to residents by the Beijing Waterworks Group.