Sinkhole swallows car in New York City

‘I feel lucky today,’ says Thupten Topjy, the Uber driver who owns the car

Several roads were closed following the discovery (NBC)

A New York City sinkhole swallowed a vehicle on Thursday, sending it plunging beneath the ground.

The orange Toyota RAV4 was discovered hood down in the gaping chasm in Maspeth in the borough of Queens at around 6am on Thanksgiving. 

New York City Council member Robert Holden said that the NYPD, fire services, National Grid and water services attended the scene to conduct safety checks.

The surrounding streets were closed while those checks took place. There were no reports of any injures, the New York City Fire Department said.

Mr Holden asked the public to inform the authorities if they find any more sinkholes.

The vehicle belongs to an Uber driver, NBC New York reported. It has since been removed from the sinkhole and towed away.

“I feel lucky today," Thupten Topjy, the owner of the vehicle told NBC. Mr Topjy had the day off but said that he would have been starting his shift near the time the car was discovered.

He said that he was worried because he has no means of making a living now that the car has been damaged and taken away.

It is unclear what caused the sinkhole but they are not uncommon in New York. Last month, a man was swarmed by rats after falling 12ft into a sinkhole in the Bronx.

Sinkholes occur when water erodes an underlying layer of rock and creates and underground chasm, according to National Geographic.