Enormous Sinkhole Swallows Buildings In China

Several buildings have fallen into an enormous sinkhole in Guangzhou, China, destroying at least five shops and taking out power for 3,000 residential units nearby, Shanghaiist reports.

The sink hole was 300 square meters wide (3229.2 square feet), and appears to be growing. Thankfully there does not appear to be any injuries at present.

This video shows the moment the sinkhole expanded, taking out much of the building and creating a chaotic scene.

Another photo from the scene, posted by a Weibo user based in Guangzhou, appears to show the huge scale of the sinkhole:

Sinkholes are becoming a worrying problem in China. In 2007, there were 54 sinkhole collapses, and by 2009, that number was all the way up to 129. According to one estimate, between July 21st and August 12th 2012, 99 sinkhole collapses occurred just in Beijing.

While the cause of this sinkhole has not been determined yet, most appear to have been caused by rapid economic development and poorly planned infrastructure.