Woman swallowed by sinkhole while walking along pavement in China

Three-metre pit is fourth to appear in Lanzhou City this year

A woman has suffered fractured ribs after falling down a sinkhole in China.

CCTV footage of the incident, which took place in Lanzhou City in Gansu province on 12 November, shows the woman walking along the busy pavement when it suddenly collapses under her feet.

She completely disappears after being swallowed by the hole, which measured roughly three metres wide and was about three metres deep.

Onlookers were hesitant to reach for the woman out of fear the pavement would continue to crumble beneath them, but officials confirmed she was rescued from the hole with a rope and taken to hospital.

She received treatment for broken ribs. Authorities are investigating the case.

According to local reports, it is the fourth sinkhole to appear in the city this year. In early September, two holes opened on the same day.

Later that month, one person died after a third sinkhole opened in a Lanzhou crossing, swallowing three people.