A road has been partly closed by a sinkhole which has appeared in the centre of Tavistock overnight.

The collapse of tarmac into a two-foot hole exposes a wide pipe and horizontal void on Market Street at its junction with Bedford Square and Drake Road.

The hole has been fenced off by highways workers, blocking off one side of West Street for a very short stretch pending repairs. The road remains open to traffic turning from Drake Road and Bedford Square. The cause of the sink hole is being investigated. The current heatwave could be a cause, but this has not been confirmed. Temperatures have reached the mid 20Cs for the past two days in Tavistock.

A Devon County Council spokesperson said: "The sinkhole is approximately 50cm in diameter and on inspection we have found a number of unlisted underground utility pipes.

"A specialised engineer will now carry out a full survey to determine the extent and purpose of these unidentified pipes and the result of this will help inform our next steps. In the meantime, signs have been put in place to warn road users."