A Glenrothes man was injured after falling in to a two-foot deep sink hole that opened up underneath him.
Calum Canning was walking along the pavement on the A911 road that links Glenrothes and Leslie shortly after 2pm on Friday when the tarmac suddenly gave way.
The 27-year-old suffered bruising to his knee from the fall, but said it could have been worse for a child or older person.
It’s thought problems from a nearby drain after downpours on Friday may have caused the ground underneath the pavement to erode away before collapsing when Mr Canning walked over it.
Pavement gave way underneath him
Mr Canning told The Courier he got the “fright of his life” when the ground suddenly opened up.
He added: “I was walking along the pavement on my way to visit my daughter in Leslie when the ground just fell right away.
“It was the last thing anyone would have expected and came as a complete shock.
“I went straight through right up to my knee before falling forward.
“My knee slammed straight into the rim of the hole and I’ve suffered bruising.
“However, had I not jarred my knee I’d have gone flat on my face so I’m just thankful it wasn’t much worse.
“Anyone could have easily suffered a broken ankle.
“I was covered in mud but my instant reaction was to jump straight up.
Injuries to leg and knee
“Some passing motorists did slow down but nobody stopped to see if I was ok.”
Mr Canning immediately called Fife Council’s emergency contact number to report the sink hole for fear of the hole being a danger to others.
“It could have been so much worse it it had been a small child of an elderly pensioner,” said Mr Canning.
“My immediate thought was that nobody would see it once it was dark as the street lighting along the road is not the best.
“I revisited the path the next day and the council have placed some sandbags in the hole as well as a traffic cone to warn people.
“The hole has even grown wider and the cracks in the tarmac run further along.
“The ground is breaking up under my feet so I wouldn’t be surprised if the problem runs further along under the tarmac.
“It just needs to be dealt with as soon as possible before someone suffers serious injury.”
Council alerted to the potential danger
As well as immediately calling to report the problem, Mr Canning said he had also emailed the local authority regarding the incident.
Fife Council says the area is being made safe ahead of a permanent fix to the pavement being carried out.
Roads maintenance service manager Bill Liddle said: “As we know, bouts of severe weather are becoming more frequent and this was another heavy downpour in a relatively short space of time.
“While we’re investing in infrastructure work to mitigate the effects of climate change and the increased risk of flooding, it’s inevitable that we will repeatedly see disruption of this nature.”
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