TWO sinkholes have opened up in roads in County Durham,

Part of Seaton Lane, at Seaton, near Seaham has been closed while a footpath near the Derwent Walk, in Blackhill, Consett had to be fenced off.

The Seaton Lane sinkhole opened up today after excavation work revealed a void beneath the road surface.

Durham County Council discovered the void after carrying out excavation work after a depression appeared in the road's eastbound carriageway.

Further excavation work will begin tomorrow to establish the extent of the hole and what remedial work is required.

The Northern Echo:

The sinkhole in Seaton Lane

The council is also dealing with a sinkhole in a footpath in Blackhill, which appeared last night.

The void beneath the path is thought to have been caused by the collapse of shuttering at the entrance to an old railway bridge which is buried beneath the A691.

Engineers inspected the bridge today and found it to be safe.

The hole will be fenced off over the weekend, with repair work due to begin on Monday.

Mark Readman, the council’s highway services manager, said: “Public safety is of utmost importance to us and we have been left with no choice but to close the road at Seaton.

“At this stage it is too early to say how long it will be closed but we will work to get it open as quickly as possible.

The Northern Echo:

The sinkhole in Blackhill, near Consett

“We would like to thank the public for their patience and understanding while the repair work is carried out.”

A County Durham road has been closed in the interests of public safety following the discovery of a sinkhole.

Go North East’s number 238 bus service which normally travels along Seaton Lane is affected by the road closure.

Passengers wishing to travel to and from Seaton will have to walk to the nearest bus stop east of the A19 on Seaton Lane.

The service will not cover the section of its normal route from east of Houghton-le-Spring to the closure.