A neighbour has spoken of his shock after returning from holiday to find a sinkhole outside his home.

The void on Upper Fant Road in Maidstone first emerged on Tuesday and Kent County Council workers made the area safe by setting up barriers as an emergency response.

On Thursday, however, the road was closed partially between the entrances to St Michael's Road and Whitmore Street and could remain shut for up to seven days while investigations take place.

WATCH: The huge sinkhole outside resident's homes

Jesus Saez, 56, had only returned from a trip to Spain this week when he saw the chasm right outside his door.

"We didn't expect to see that at all, it was a big shock," he said.

"I couldn't get in with the car initially because the drive was all blocked.

"The water has also been dark and dirty and filled with debris at times but thankfully I was able to have a shower this morning.

Bev Ainsworth, 55, who lives opposite, was the first to report the sinkhole.

She said: "At the moment we can get on and off the drive and can access the house without too much trouble, which is the most important thing.

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"The initial hole was quite big, if a bus was driving down the road, one of its wheels would definitely have been down it and that would have been it.

"For now it's just a bit of an inconvenience and nothing more but we pay a lot of council tax so hopefully they know what they're doing and it all gets sorted as quickly as they can."

The hole is understood to be around 1x2x1 metres and comes just over a year after a massive gap opened up outside an Indian restaurant on the nearby A26 Tonbridge Road.

Many had to be evacuated from their homes after the collapse, while local businesses also suffered significantly during the five months of disruption, with Taj Barming owner Kiron Haque estimating the hole cost him £200,000 in lost revenue.

Read more: All the latest news from Maidstone

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