A man has died after being sucked into a 13m-deep sinkhole in a swimming pool in Israel.
Footage on social media showed guests at a private work party in Karmi Yosef, 40km southeast of Tel Aviv, as the sinkhole formed, causing the pool to buckle and collapse inward. All the water, an inflatable raft and toys were quickly sucked into the giant hole.
In the footage, one man was seen near the sinkhole – he slipped and appeared to be nearly sucked in before he backed away.
People were heard shouting warnings as the situation unfolded.
A guest told local media: “The water level suddenly started receding and a hole opened up, creating a vortex that swept two people inside.”
Aviv Bublil, hired as a lifeguard at the private party, said the “ground just dropped”.
“I saw two people … two people were missing.”
A man identified as Klil Kimhi, 32, of Tel Aviv, was found dead after a four-hour search by police, emergency crews and the army, authorities said.
Another 34-year-old man managed to climb out of the sinkhole and suffered minor injuries to his head and legs, paramedic Uri Damari told the Jerusalem Post.
Natan and Rachel Meller were put under house arrest by police in Israel a day after the party.
The man and woman, aged in their sixties, were arrested on suspicion of causing death by negligence, after allegations the pool was built without proper licensing.
They were released on Friday on “restrictive conditions of house arrest”.
About 50 people were at the party and six people were in the pool when the incident happened.
At a hearing, Sergeant Rami Desta accused the couple of playing “a very large contribution to this tragic outcome,” the Washington Post reported.
“They could have prevented this outcome if they had gotten a permit,” Sgt Desta said, Ynet reported.
Zion Amir, a lawyer for the couple, said his clients were “good people” and could not have anticipated that a sinkhole would form.
“This is a very unusual event,” he said.
Sinkholes can form a hole in the ground when water dissolves rock.
The land in that area of Israel is prone to sinkholes because of the presence of rock salt, which is easily dissolved in water.
Recently, a giant sinkhole formed in the Bronx, New York, with a van falling into the pit.
Originally published as Man dies after being sucked into sinkhole in Israel swimming pool
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