Malton: Sinkhole appears as water levels remain high

A sinkhole has appeared in a North Yorkshire town recently affected by flooding.

The dip, which appeared in Malton at the junction of Castlegate and Sheepfoot Hill, prompted an emergency response on Thursday evening.

Nearby County Bridge has been closed for the past week as a result of flooding and is not yet safe to reopen, North Yorkshire Council said.

Councillor Keane Duncan said it had been a "tense, disruptive" time.

The sinkhole covered about half of the width of the carriageway and firefighters, gas engineers and council workers were called to the scene after it appeared, Mr Duncan said.

Speaking to BBC York, he said the area had been cordoned off and was "under control".

"The smell of gas is being investigated but that is not at a level of concern. Access to homes and businesses is still possible," he said.

But he said that although river levels had fallen, ground water levels were "rising quickly".

The bridge linking Malton and Norton remained closed with 24 pumps still working to move water from the area.

The council said it also planned to temporarily remove concrete blocks from Norton Road, which formed part of a one-way trial, to reopen it to traffic in both directions.

Mr Duncan said there had been a "giant effort" to protect homes and businesses during the flooding.

"It's been a very tense, disruptive, concerning time," he said.

A council spokesperson said elsewhere in North Yorkshire the swing bridge in Cawood across the river Ouse remained shut, along with several roads in the area around Selby.

Some roads and bridges in Bolton Percy, Buttercrambe, Cawood, and Eggborough as well as Hensall, Kirkby Wharfe, Ozendyke and Ryther also remain affected by the flooding.

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