Italy: Huge sinkhole opens up at Naples hospital

An enormous sinkhole opened Friday in the parking lot of a hospital in Naples, Italy, pushing the momentary shut down of a nearby residence for recovering COVID-19 patients because services were severed.

Operations weren’t impacted at the Hospital of the Sea, and firefighters stated it didn’t seem anyone was wounded. The sinkhole consumed three cars in the hospital.

The local hospital district maintained the 20-meter-deep (66 feet), 2,000-square-meter (21,527-square-foot) sinkhole opened at dawn. Chief firefighter Cmdr. Ennio Aquilino told Italian television channel SkyTG 24 the implosion could have been generated by an infiltration of water underground as a result of recent heavy rains.

At the time, six people were recovering at the residence for COVID-19 patients. They have been relocated.

The regional governor, Vincenzo De Luca, said the residence would reopen within days after electricity and water service were restored. Both were also interrupted at the hospital, but backup systems allowed care to continue.

“Frankly, we were also worried about the collapse of all utilities and that the activity of the hospital could be jeopardized,” De Luca said. “Thank God, this did not happen. We had a power break, but electricity was restored and now we don’t have any problem in providing care.”