Borough crews repair sinkhole

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A sink hole on Hillside Avenue near the intersection of Meadow Street in Naugatuck was discovered by a resident Saturday morning. –RA ARCHIVE
A sink hole on Hillside Avenue near the intersection of Meadow Street in Naugatuck was discovered by a resident Saturday morning. –RA ARCHIVE

NAUGATUCK — A sinkhole formed on Hillside Avenue near the intersection of Meadow Street Saturday morning, closing a section of the road for most of the day.

Officials believe the sinkhole was caused by a storm sewer pipe that broke, causing the soil above it to wash away and the asphalt to cave in.

“I suspect the pipe may have been cracked or had a small breach in it with the rain we had yesterday,” said Bob Roland, superintendent of the Naugatuck Department of Public Works.

On Saturday morning, a resident reported the sinkhole to police, who cordoned off the area until the Department of Public Works arrived.

The sinkhole was about 6 feet wide and 8 to 10 feet long. No one was injured and there was no damage to anyone’s property.

The section of the road near 16 Hillside Ave., where the sinkhole formed, was closed all afternoon while town crews patched the 24-inch pipe and filled in the hole.

They laid gravel on top so that cars can drive over the area. By 7 p.m. Saturday, the road had been reopened.

Once the subsurface settles, the town will lay new asphalt, Roland said.

The sinkhole didn’t affect the water or sewer lines to homes and businesses in the area.