Rome (CNN) A huge sinkhole, about 22,000 square feet across and 66 feet deep, swallowed several cars and forced the evacuation of a Covid ward after opening up in the parking lot of a hospital in southern Italy on Friday. The incident took place around 6:30 a.m. local time, according to the Ospedale del Mare hospital in Naples . Various vehicles that were parked in the area plummeted into the chasm, the local fire brigade said. "The early-morning hypothesis that it was an explosion has been dismissed. The fire brigade used dog units to check no one was trapped at the site.

Source: CNN January 08, 2021 15:45 UTC