Sinkhole appears on major road in Stanley as police warn the public

Emergency services were alerted late on Wednesday afternoon to the hole at Royal Road Stanley.

The immediate area surrounding the hole which is about 3-ft wide has been cordoned off but the traffic is still moving freely.

Read more: LIVE: Large police presence at incident in Medomsley

The appearance of the sinkhole at the junction of the A6076 and Royal Road comes a day after another sinkhole appeared on the A694  – causing massive disruption on that road.

The Stanley sinkhole was first noticed at about 4pm on Wednesday. 

Some images of the sinkhole:

Pictures: GAVIN ENGELBRECHT.

Kerry Carver who works for BT Openworld was in the area when the whole first appeared.

She said to the Northern Echo: "I was working in the area and I just down tools when I noticed cancel workers at the hole putting up barriers. 

Here's where the sinkhole is located:

Picture: GOOGLE.

"It was at about 4pm." 

On social media, some expressed their disbelief as the sinkhole appeared just days after one opened up on the A694 near Medomsley.

Anthea Coxon, Durham County Council’s highway services manager, said: “We became aware of a sinkhole at Station Road, Stanley, yesterday afternoon.

"Our highways inspectors attended, ensuring the area was made safe and that traffic could move around it safely.

"Further investigations will continue today before repairs begin.”

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