Ouseburn: Road closed off after 4ft-deep sinkhole appears

A burst water main at the scene has now been repaired and investigations are ongoing into the cause of the sinkhole

A street has been closed off after a 4ft (1.2m) deep sinkhole appeared.

The area at Stepney Bank, near New Bridge Street in Ouseburn, Newcastle, has been cordoned off after the hole appeared on Tuesday.

Alan Scorer, manager of the nearby Little Buildings music venue said he had to abandon a show because the water went off after the "gaping chasm" appeared.

Northumbrian Water said its engineers had repaired a burst water main.

The firm said it was too soon to say whether the sinkhole was linked to recent heavy rainstorms.

Mr Scorer said: "It was a good job there were no cars parked there when it opened up. We had to abandon the remainder of a show because we didn't have any running water.

"Thankfully the water is back on. It's like a gaping chasm where something is actually going to fall into it or crawl out of it."

The nearby Little Buildings music venue had to abandon a show when the hole appeared and its water went off

"Our teams have been on site to carry out an emergency repair after customer reports of no water", a spokesperson Northumbrian Water said.

"We discovered a burst on a water main and the teams have been working hard and the repair has been completed with minimal disruption to customers.

"Investigations are ongoing into what caused the damage to the road and the water main and we will continue to work with partners to restore the road surface."