Two-month-old sink hole in Hoghton will only be repaired after lockdown is lifted, says Council

The sinkhole in Bells Lane was first reported in February when the road suddenly collapsed after weeks of heavy rainfall.

Lancashire County Council said the sinkhole happened due to the sheer volume of water flooding a culvert beneath the road.

It has been cordoned off with plastic barriers and metal fencing, preventing motorists from accessing Bells Lane.

The Council has scaled back its road repairs since lockdown came into force, but said it will repair the sinkhole once restrictions are lifted.

Until then, only 'urgent' work is being authorised, including emergency pothole repairs and fixing traffic signals and street lights.

Rob Wilson, area highways manager for Lancashire County Council, said: "This road collapse happened during the severe storms in early February as a result of the volume of water exacerbating a relatively minor existing drainage issue.

"Repair of a culvert collapse such as this in normal times would take careful planning and this would be even more difficult in the current circumstances, however we will look to programme repairs as soon as the restrictions due to COVID-19 allow.

"We're sorry for any inconvenience in the meantime due to the road closure."

Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the county council are only doing urgent highway work such as pothole repairs, and fixing streetlights and traffic signals.