Cornwall Man Finds Vehicle in Mysterious Ground Collapse

The first indication the local man received of his predicament was when a neighbor loudly knocked on his front door and informed him his beloved Mini had fallen into a hole.

"I stepped outside anticipating a small pothole under a wheel or something like that. But when I walked out to take a look, I understood, oh, that truly is a proper hole," he stated.

His automobile had dropped into a 10-foot wide gap, likely caused by a mineshaft collapse, and McKenzie has endured 25 days caught in a bureaucratic "difficult situation" trying to figure out how to retrieve his Mini.

The Main Issue: Unregistered Property

The hitch is that the property isn't registered. The local council has stated it won't take down the barriers cordoning off the hole until land ownership had been confirmed. "It's a bit of a nightmare," said McKenzie, 36, a freelance designer. "It's red tape everywhere."

McKenzie has resided in the neighborhood in Redruth for about 10 years and in fact has a designated spot next to his house, but it is too narrow to be practical so he began parking outside a nearby bakery. He had checked with both the shop and the local authority that he wouldn't get a parking fine.

"I had finally reached a point like I was getting somewhere, I had a dependable small vehicle that was fuel-efficient and easy to keep on the road. It signified I could finally focus on trying to save up to take my daughter on her dream trip to Japan someday. She's always wanted to go."

The Event and Aftermath

Then arrived that knock on the door on a Saturday in November. "My neighbour was very alarmed. The officers turned up and secured the zone off. We all had to stay in the homes because we couldn't leave without passing by the hole. The road crew arrived, put the fence up, and then they came out and put a second fence up surrounding it as well."

It is thought the opening may be an unfortunate remnant of a historic local mine, a abandoned mining site.

McKenzie thought he would be without his vehicle for a short period. But days have now become weeks.

A Possible Solution

An end may be in sight. The council has stated it will cooperate with McKenzie to – briefly – lift the fences to allow the Mini to be removed. He commented: "They are willing to work with my insurance company's recovery team and try to schedule a date and an acceptable way of getting it out that doesn't put anybody at danger."

The vehicle has been significantly harmed and is likely to be declared a total loss. "On the bright side I can say my Mini went out in a memorable way – not everyone can claim their vehicle was eaten by the Earth itself," McKenzie noted.

Council Statement

A representative from the authorities said it sympathised with McKenzie. But it added: "The ground giving way did not occur on public property. We have made the area safe and informed the car owner that we will organize to temporarily remove the fence to allow him to retrieve the vehicle.

"As the land is unregistered, our barriers will stay up until property ownership has been determined, and we will persist to observe the surrounding area to ensure public safety."