February 26, 2025
Michaela Althouse/PhillyVoice
The sinkhole on Birch Street in Port Richmond engulfed one car and trapped another on the edge after it opened Tuesday. About 30 nearby homes were temporarily without water. The road has been shut down.
About 30 homes in Port Richmond were left without water after a sinkhole opened up on the 2700 block of Birch Street on Tuesday afternoon.
A vehicle parked on the street was trapped in the sinkhole, and another car was positioned over the edge of the gap, which spanned the width of the street. The sinkhole opened up around 1:30 p.m., 6ABC reported.
The Philadelphia Water Department reported a 6-inch main break caused by the hole and temporarily shut off the water to nearby homes to make repairs. Their access has been restored. Birch Street remained closed between Salmon and Edgemont streets as of Wednesday morning.
The car that had been on the edge — a white Mazda — was easily towed, though its owner reportedly was out of town. But the vehicle inside the hole required rigging and wasn't removed until about 11:30 p.m., NBC10 reported.
The vehicle's owner, though, wasn't too upset about the incident.
"I've been a police officer 32 years. I've seen it all, no big deal," Steve Williams told 6ABC. "As long as nobody was hurt, nobody was injured, nobody lost their life. It's property damage, it's a vehicle, you just go from there."
City officials have not given a timeline for repairing the road.
