Sydney apartment building hangs over gaping hole

A partially collapsed apartment building sits near a hole in the northern suburb of Lane Cove in Sydney. Picture / Reuters

SYDNEY - A Sydney apartment building was left hanging over a massive hole yesterday when the earth disappeared beneath its foundations after a rockslide in a traffic tunnel under construction.

The rockslide left a 10m wide by 10m deep hole beside a major road, causing traffic chaos in the northern suburb of Lane Cove.

Sixty residents were evacuated from the 24 apartment, three-storey building, as dozens of trucks pumped concrete into the hole in an attempt to shore up its foundations.

"There is a reality that the building will collapse. I think we can see from here that there is structural damage," police superintendent Doreen Cruickshank told reporters.

Sydney has built a number of underground traffic tunnels in recent years to try to alleviate commuter congestion.

- REUTERS