Massive Sinkhole Swallows 2 Cars in Central Da Nang Leaving Engineer Injured

A large sinkhole opened suddenly in downtown Da Nang on the afternoon of 3 December, pulling 2 cars and an engineer into a 20 meter long cavity near the Han River.

The collapse occurred around 14:00 on Nguyen Cong Tru Street during heavy rain. Workers at a nearby high rise construction site noticed the metal fence separating the project from the street tilting. A site engineer ran over to check it. Seconds later, the road surface gave way beneath him, dragging him and 2 cars one white and one gray into the hole.

Witnesses said the engineer became trapped under one of the vehicles. A crane from the construction site was mobilized to lift the car and rescue the victim, who suffered leg injuries.

Security camera footage from nearby homes captured the moment the road collapsed.

Residents reported hearing a loud boom just before the ground sank. The sinkhole is estimated to be about 20 meters long and 7 meters wide, swallowing the entire sidewalk and part of the street. A black car parked next to the hole was left hanging at an angle but did not fall in.

At 14:10, Khanh a resident living across from the site had just arrived home and was waiting to cross the street when she heard a loud noise behind her. “People shouted and I immediately rode away from the parked cars. A few seconds later, the whole road dropped,” she said.

By 15:30, authorities had lifted both cars out of the sinkhole. One vehicle had a crushed hood and the other sustained heavy front end damage.

The collapse occurred next to a high rise construction project and sits on top of a drainage line connecting Ngo Quyen Street to the Han River. About 10 days earlier, the same drainage section experienced a smaller subsidence that the project contractor repaired with concrete.

Police and local authorities have cordoned off the area, set up warning barriers and erected a 2 meter tarpaulin wall along the construction boundary. With continuous rain in Da Nang, residents worry the sinkhole could widen due to high water flow.

Officials are investigating the cause of the collapse.

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Source: Vietnam Insider