Mystery hole that swallowed river caused by damaged pipe

Around 50 dead fish have been seen near a hole that has reportedly drained an entire Llanelli river.

Natural Resources Wales are investigating after the entire water flow of the Afon Lliedi situated under the Llanelli bridge disappeared on Monday.

A damaged sewer pipe is thought to have halted the flow of the Afon Lliedi.

The Coal Authority attended the incident and found that the hole was not a sinkhole as had previously been suspected.

Officers said the situation is under control and safety measures have been put in place to protect the public but the bridge remains closed as a precaution due to concerns about its stability.

Ioan Williams from Natural Resources Wales said that he was working with the council to limit further damage caused."We can confirm that approximately 50 dead fish have been seen in the immediate area. Living fish have been seen in small pools in the river channel downriver", he added."We hope that pumping the river flow beyond the hole will reduce the number of fish killed by providing some river flow to the fish trapped in small pools.

"We will carry out a fish assessment of the river see if further fish have died due to a lack of water flow."