5 crore rupee Rolls Royce swallowed by sink-hole; Owner climbs out of window

Sinkholes are probably the most terrifying things on any road, anywhere. A Rolls Royce owner just got a taste of how suddenly sinkholes can form, and swallow everything above them. The incident happened  in Harbin, the capital city of China’s northeastern Heilongjiang province on Sunday (1st October).

The owner was waiting at a red light in his Rolls Royce Ghost ultra-luxury car when the sinkhole suddenly swallowed his car. Luckily for him, he managed to clamber to safety, through one of the car’s windows. Things could have easily escalated into something a lot more tragic.

Here’s comment from the owner of the car,

I was waiting at the traffic light here and was just about to start the car as the light changed to green, when the road suddenly caved in.

As the image and video indicates, the car was heavily damaged in the incident, and is said to be a write-off (also called total loss, and something that cannot be repaired). Nobody was hurt in the incident though.

Why are sinkholes formed?

Sinkholes are formed when the surface layer of the soil collapses. This collapse is generally caused due to carbonate rocks dissolving. Sinkholes usually occur very unexpectedly. Recently, a similar sinkhole in Chennai swallowed a bus and a Honda City.

Can you do anything about it?

Not really. The only thing that could perhaps save you if the sinkhole isn’t deep is a life-hammer, a device that can be used to break the car’s windows and escape out. If you don’t have the life-hammer, even your car’s headrests will do. Here’s how you can break free from a car using the headrest.

Via ChannelNewsAsia