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Car Stuck In Sinkhole In Manchester Street

MANCHESTER, N. H. (CBS) – A driver was caught in a frightening incident early Monday morning in Manchester's North End.

WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Bernice Corpuz reports

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A woman was approaching the intersection at Beech and North Streets just after 6 a.m. when she tried to drive through a puddle that had been created by a water main break.

WBZ-TV's Karen Anderson reports

The puddle was actually covering a sinkhole and the driver and her car ended up trapped, just above an eight-inch gas line.

About 5,000 gallons of water was erupting below the car each minute.

The hole was 75 feet by 15 feet wide and about six feet deep.

Firefighters made a human chain to rescue the woman.

"We had to act quickly. Because of the angle of the car it could have slipped into the hole, " Fire Lt. Dan O'Rourke told WBZ-TV.

The unidentified woman wasn't hurt, but she was anxious to get on with her day.

Firefighters called her a taxi and she went to work.

The neighborhood was without water service for the morning.

About 1.2 million gallons was lost.

WBZ-TV's Karen Anderson contributed to this report.

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