A COLLAPSED sewer on a Wokingham road has caused a sinkhole to open, swallowing a tanker.
A team from Thames Water’s contractors are on site attempting to make the site safe.
The tanker is expected to remain in situ until at least Monday.
Thames Water is at the start of a four-week maintenance and upgrade programme on Evendons Lane, with works starting on Friday, September 30.
The sinkhole appeared overnight, leaving the lorry stuck and the road closed.
It is next to Evendons Primary School and the car park is understood to be accessible at this time, and Thames Water says it is working on a diversion for those residents affected.
A team have been on site to make the area safe, and put in diversions. They are also working with Wokingham Borough Council and the Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service to confirm the recovery plan and ensure disruption is kept to a minimum.
To remove the tanker, a specialist crane will need to be brought in, but due to the collapsed sewer, Thames Water’s crews need to check the surrounding ground to ensure it can withstand the weight of the recovery vehicle.
The company told Wokingham Today that it is working as fast as possible, but the results of its survey will not be received until Monday morning.
It said that as soon as they receive this report, they will get the crane on site and the tanker removed. Once that happens, the works to repair the sewer can start again.
It is also hoped that half of the road will be reopened when this happens, to allow traffic to resume. However, this cannot be confirmed until the tanker is safely removed.
A spokesperson for Thames Water said: “We’re very sorry to our customers impacted by the road closure on Evendon Road, RG41, today.
“Whilst supporting the repair of a collapsed sewer one of our larger vehicles has sunk in to a hole in the road.
“Our teams are on site, they have made the area safe and set up signposting for a vehicle diversion. However, at this time we expect the road to remain closed until at least Monday – when we can ensure the safe removal of this vehicle and restart the repair on the sewer.”
They added: “We are working closely with the local council and other stakeholders to reduce the impact to local residents and the local school while we carry out our work.”
