🔗 Share this article

The initial sign the local man had of his situation was when a neighbor loudly knocked on his door and told him his beloved Mini had fallen into a hole.

"I went out anticipating a minor dip under a tire or something like that. But when I walked out to check it out, I realized, oh, that truly is a proper hole," he stated.

His automobile had descended into a 10-foot wide opening, possibly created by a collapsed mine shaft, and McKenzie has endured 25 days caught in a administrative "nightmare" trying to figure out how to extricate his Mini.

The Main Issue: Unregistered Land

The complication is that the property has no registered owner. The authorities has stated it won't take down the barriers blocking off the hole until land ownership had been established. "It's quite a difficult situation," said McKenzie, 36, a freelance creative. "There's bureaucracy at every turn."

McKenzie has lived in the neighborhood in Redruth for about 10 years and in fact has a designated spot next to his house, but it is too narrow to be useful so he began parking outside a local bakery. He had checked with both the bakery and the council that he wouldn't get a parking fine.

"I had finally reached a point like I was getting somewhere, I had a reliable little car that was economical and simple to keep on the road. It signified I could at last 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 arrived that loud rapping on a Saturday in November. "The person next door was very alarmed. The police turned up and secured the zone off. We all had to remain in the homes because we can't get out without passing by the collapse. The road crew arrived, erected the fence up, and then they returned and placed a second fence up surrounding it as well."

It is thought the hole may be an unfortunate remnant of a historic local mine, a disused copper and tin mine.

McKenzie thought he would be without his car for a few days. But that short time have now become weeks.

A Potential Resolution

An end may be in sight. The council has stated it will work with McKenzie to – temporarily – remove the barriers to permit the Mini to be recovered. He commented: "They are willing to work with my insurer's recovery team and try to arrange a day and an suitable way of getting it out that ensures no anybody at risk."

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

Authority Response

A spokesperson from the local council said it felt sorry with McKenzie. But it said: "The ground giving way did not occur on council land. We have made the area safe and advised the vehicle owner that we will arrange to lift the fence to enable him to recover the vehicle.

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