Road closure in Chicopee because of large sinkhole, PD says

CHICOPEE — A gaping sinkhole opened where Whitin Avenue becomes Amherst Street in Chicopee on Friday morning, shutting down the roadway, according to police officials.

Tyler Thurston, junior civil engineer draftsman for the city's Water Department, said the department was notified of a water main break at around 6:20 a.m.

"The cast iron underground was laid more than 100 years ago, leaving it brittle," said Thurston. "The plug holding back the water from escaping failed."

Thurston said it would take the department's crew a few hours to fix the water main and the rest of the day to fill the hole and make sure it was safe to drive over.

The Chicopee Police Department said the road was closed at around 9:45 a.m., according to a Facebook post. The department advised people trying to get to the Connecticut River boat ramp to access it via Wilson Avenue and Old Field Road.

There were no reported injuries as a result of the sinkhole, according to Travis Odiorne, public information officer for the department.

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