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Sinkhole reappears at junction of Chilham Close and Hildenborough Crescent near Allington Primary School in Maidstone

19:25, 06 July 2023

updated: 19:33, 06 July 2023

A sinkhole has appeared outside a primary school, just nine months after another opened up at the same spot.

It was spotted by residents in Chilham Road, Allington, near Maidstone, close to Allington Primary School, around 5pm today.

A sinkhole has appeared in Chilham Road, Allington. Pic credit: Sophie Martin
A sinkhole has appeared in Chilham Road, Allington. Pic credit: Sophie Martin
The sinkhole in Chilham Road, Allington Photo credit: Sophie Martin
The sinkhole in Chilham Road, Allington Photo credit: Sophie Martin

Resident Sophie Martin said it is getting worse everytime she looks at it.

“It’s crumbling away under the road little by little,” she said. “We all basically thought ‘here we go again’.

“All the children think it’s really exciting but it really needs someone to go out there as soon as possible to block it off.”

Residents say the cracks in the path are in the exact same spot where a previous 3ft deep hole measuring 8ft by 4ft appeared last September.

That one came just days after South East Water had closed the road to carry out repairs.

The sinkhole in Chilham Road, Allington Photo credit: Sophie Martin
The sinkhole in Chilham Road, Allington Photo credit: Sophie Martin

Borough councillor Stanley Forecast (Con) said he has reported the issues to Kent County Council and believes it could be to do with poor drainage around nearby roads.

He said: “It is something that needs to be looked into properly because it keeps happening.”

Back in September 2018, another hole opened in nearby Allington Way and stopped a business owner from using her driveway.

Just less than three miles away, in Barming, the A26 Tonbridge Road was closed after a large sinkhole appeared in October last year.

At the time, it was measured at about 16ft by 20ft across and according to one witness was "very deep".

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