Giant sinkhole swallows middle of Illinois football field [Video]

A giant sinkhole has swallowed the centre of a football field in Illinois where squads of children often play, leaving a gaping 100-foot-wide crater in the middle of the community park.

The open chasm dramatically appeared on Wednesday, taking down a light pole and artificial turf.

But no injuries were reported after the sinkhole opened.

“No one was on the field at the time and no one was hurt, and that’s the most important thing,” Alton Mayor David Goins told The (Alton) Telegraph.

Security footage captured the hole’s sudden formation at the city’s Gordon Moore Park.

It was estimated to be at least 100 feet (30.5 meters) wide and 50 feet (15.2 meters) deep, according to the city’s parks and recreation director.

Director Michael Haynes told KMOV-TV: “It was surreal. Kind of like a movie where the ground just falls out from underneath you.”

Authorities believe the sinkhole resulted from “surface subsidence” at its underground mine in city, …