A car plunged into a sinkhole after a section of Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR) caved in near Tidel Park in Chennai on Thursday morning, disrupting traffic on the busy corridor. The two occupants escaped unhurt, while officials began removing the vehicle and filling the sinkhole.
The incident occurred near Thiruvanmiyur MRTS, close to an underground Metro construction site. The white car was travelling along OMR when a portion of the road near the median suddenly gave way, trapping one of its front tyres.
A video of the incident showed an MTC bus attempting to pass between the stranded car and a Metro barricade. The car subsequently plunged into the opening and landed upside down. The collapse and the rescue operation affected movement on the busy stretch.
Work was under way to remove the car and fill the sinkhole, according to the report. The immediate response focused on clearing the road and addressing the cavity so that the affected section could be secured.
Chennai Metro Rail Limited officials were yet to confirm whether the underground Metro work was linked to the road collapse. The presence of the construction site has made the cause of the cave-in a key question, but no official link had been established in the information available.
Police sources said underground utilities, including Metro Water pipelines, had been relocated ahead of the Metro work. They ruled out a rupture in water pipelines as a possible cause of the cave-in. The police assessment did not establish what caused the road surface to fail.
The incident highlights the operational risks faced on a major urban corridor where daily traffic is moving alongside large-scale underground infrastructure work. For road users, the immediate concerns are safe passage, barricading and the stability of the affected section. The next formal assessment by the agencies involved is expected to clarify the cause of the collapse and the steps required before normal traffic movement can resume.
