A large sinkhole that opened up on a residential street in Merthyr Tydfil on Sunday (December 1) continues to grow.

The sinkhole - located on a residential street in Nant Morlais, Pant - was initially reported to be several metres deep, spanning across the entire pavement and some of the road.

But the pit has continued to expand, with further cracks appearing in the road surface.

The hole is now 12 metres deep and five metres wide, according to Good Morning Britain (GMB).

The sinkhole was caused by the collapse of a culvert – a structure that allows water to flow under roads and railways.

Nearly 30 homes evacuated due to sinkhole

The sinkhole, and the threat it poses, has led to the evacuation of 29 homes at Nant Morlais.

Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council Leader, Councillor Brent Carter, issued an update on the situation on Monday (December 2) afternoon.

He said: “Our priority today is to stop the flow of water going into the culvert so that our engineers can do interim stabilisation works to stop it expanding further.

"We can then carry out a safe inspection.

“The sinkhole has resulted from the sheer volume of material that was washed down from the mountain during Storm Bert."

The sinkhole in Nant continues to growThe sinkhole in Nant Morlais continues to grow (Image: Eye In The Sky) Councillor Carter added the collapse may have occurred as early as a week before the sinkhole actually appeared.

He continued: "At around 6am on Sunday 24th November three separate households from Nant Morlais heard rumblings and bangs, which at the time they thought was thunder.

"However, from our understanding that is when the collapse happened and it has taken 6 days to migrate to the surface.

“We understand that residents from the street are keen to know when they will be able to return to their homes, however we will not be able to give a timeline on this until a thorough inspection of the culvert has taken place to eliminate any further risk.

"In the meantime, residents from the 29 properties that were evacuated are being supported by our Housing Officers.

“Safety is our absolute priority.”

'Feels like the world is collapsing'

Senior news correspondent at GMB, Jonathan Swain, was at the sinkhole in Pant early on Tuesday (December 3) morning and said the pressure from the houses threatened to make it even bigger.

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Mr Swain said it was "terrifying" for residents.

He commented: "It feels like the world is collapsing around them for the people who once lived here (Nant Morlais) because they've now just been evacuated yesterday (Monday).

"The road is certainly collapsing around them."