Cornwall Resident Loses Vehicle in Unexpected Ground Collapse

The first indication Malcolm McKenzie received of his predicament was when a person living nearby loudly knocked on his front door and informed him his cherished Mini had fallen into a hole.

"I stepped outside expecting a minor dip under a tire or something similar. But when I walked out to take a look, I realized, oh, that really is a significant cavity," he stated.

His vehicle had descended into a 3-metre wide gap, likely created by a collapsed mine shaft, and McKenzie has endured 25 days stuck in a administrative "nightmare" trying to determine how to retrieve his Mini.

The Core Problem: Unregistered Property

The complication is that the land isn't registered. The authorities has said it won't take down the fences cordoning off the sinkhole until property rights had been established. "It's a bit of a nightmare," said McKenzie, 36, a freelance creative. "There's bureaucracy at every turn."

McKenzie has resided in the area in Redruth for about 10 years and actually has a parking space beside his house, but it is not wide enough to be useful so he began parking outside a nearby bakery. He had checked with both the bakery and the local authority that he would avoid receiving a parking fine.

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

The Event and Aftermath

Then came that knock on the door on a Saturday in November. "My neighbour was very alarmed. The police arrived and closed the zone off. We all had to remain in the homes because we can't get out without going past the collapse. The highways people came out, put the barrier up, and then they returned and put a additional barrier up surrounding it as well."

It is thought the opening may be an unlucky legacy of Pednandrea Mine, a abandoned copper and tin mine.

McKenzie believed he would be separated from his vehicle for a few days. But days have now turned into weeks.

A Potential Solution

An conclusion may be approaching. The council has said it will cooperate with McKenzie to – temporarily – lift the barriers to allow the Mini to be recovered. He commented: "They have agreed to work with my insurance company's retrieval crew and try to schedule a date and an suitable way of getting it out that doesn't put anybody at danger."

The car has been badly damaged and is probably to be written off. "On the bright side I can say my Mini met its end in a memorable way – not everyone can claim their vehicle was eaten by the Earth itself," McKenzie noted.

Council Response

A spokesperson from the local council expressed it sympathised with McKenzie. But it added: "The ground giving way did not happen on public property. We have secured the location and advised the vehicle owner that we will organize to lift the fence to enable him to recover the car.

"Since no one owns the land, our safety measures will remain in place until land ownership has been determined, and we will continue to monitor the vicinity to guarantee public safety."