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The initial sign Malcolm McKenzie received of his predicament was when a neighbor urgently banged on his front door and informed him his cherished Mini had fallen into a opening.

"I went out expecting a small pothole under a tire or something like that. But when I walked out to take a look, I realized, oh, that truly is a significant cavity," he explained.

His automobile had descended into a 3-metre wide opening, likely caused by a collapsed mine shaft, and McKenzie has endured 25 days stuck in a bureaucratic "difficult situation" trying to determine how to extricate his car.

The Main Issue: Unregistered Property

The complication is that the property has no registered owner. The authorities has said it won't take down the barriers blocking off the hole until land ownership had been established. "It's a bit of a nightmare," said McKenzie, 36, a self-employed creative. "There's bureaucracy at every turn."

McKenzie has lived in the area in Redruth for about 10 years and actually has a designated spot next to his house, but it is too narrow to be practical so he began parking outside a local bakery. He had verified with both the shop and the council that he would avoid receiving a ticket.

"I'd finally felt like I was getting somewhere, I had a reliable little car that was economical and simple to keep on the road. It signified I could at last focus on trying to put money aside to take my daughter on her aspirational journey to Japan someday. She's constantly dreamed to go."

The Incident and Consequences

Then came that knock on the door on a Saturday in November. "The person next door was quite panicked. The police arrived and secured the zone off. We all had to remain in the homes because we can't get out without going past the hole. The highways people arrived, erected the barrier up, and then they returned and placed a second fence up around it as well."

It is believed the opening may be an unlucky remnant of Pednandrea Mine, a abandoned mining site.

McKenzie thought he would be without his vehicle for a short period. But that short time have now turned into weeks.

A Potential Solution

An conclusion may be in sight. The authorities has said it will work with McKenzie to – briefly – lift the barriers to allow the car to be removed. He commented: "They have agreed to assist my insurance company's recovery team and try to schedule a day and an suitable way of extracting it that doesn't put anybody at danger."

The car has been significantly harmed and is likely to be declared a total loss. "At least I can say my Mini met its end in style – not everyone can say their car was eaten by the Earth itself," McKenzie noted.

Council Statement

A representative from the authorities expressed it sympathised with McKenzie. But it said: "The ground giving way did not happen on public property. We have secured the location and informed the car owner that we will organize to temporarily remove the barrier to enable him to retrieve the vehicle.

"Since no one owns the land, our barriers will remain in place until property ownership has been established, and we will persist to monitor the vicinity to ensure public safety."