Camborne house section 'collapses into mine shaft'
Part of a semi-detached house has collapsed after an old mine shaft is thought to have opened up.
No-one was injured in the collapse in Tehidy Road, Camborne, at about 05:00 GMT. The road is closed.
The family who live there told the BBC they moved out after finding a void under their doorstep and cracks in walls on Monday.
A former mining adit is reported to have opened up several years ago in a neighbouring garden.
Michael Williams, who lives in the house with his wife, his son and his son's fiancee, said cracks 2in (5cm) wide had appeared in the house before the collapse.
'Prone to collapse'
Former mining consultant Allen Buckley said the collapse may have been triggered by recent heavy rainfall.
"Most of the old mine shafts were capped with railway sleepers which last for 100 or 200 years," he said.
"But unfortunately when the debris above gets saturated, the weight means it is prone to collapse.
"This has happened scores of time over the years, particularly after periods of very wet weather."
Engineers from Cornwall Council and contractors Cormac have started inspecting the area.
The local authority said in a statement: "There has been a partial collapse of a house on Tehidy Road, Camborne into an unrecorded mining feature.
"Tehidy Road is closed outside the property with diversions in place for the foreseeable future.
"The situation is now in the hands of the insurance company/loss adjusters, and Building Control will be liaising with them to determine a plan to make the building secure and undertaking the necessary remediation.
"Our geotechnical engineers will be keeping a close eye on future investigations with respect to highway safety and any subsequent remediation should it affect the highway.
"There is no timescale at present for the works."
The collapse follows a hole in the road appearing at Rosudgeon in Cornwall, revealing a deep mine shaft beneath on Tuesday.