An eyewitness says a woman was in "a lot of pain" after falling into a sinkhole which opened up beneath a footpath leading into Rotorua's Whakarewarewa Village.
Tessa Marks was in the village at the time of the accident on Thursday afternoon and heard cries for help.
While three people pulled the woman from the hole as her partner watched on, Marks called the ambulance.
Tessa Marks says she jumped into action after hearing calls for help. (Source: 1News)
St John Ambulance earlier said two people - one in a critical condition and the other with moderate injuries - were taken to Rotorua Hospital.
The woman has since been transferred to Waikato Hospital where she is in a stable condition. The husband has been discharged from hospital.
READ MORE: Two people injured after Rotorua sinkhole opens
Marks told 1News the area had been steaming for a week and a cone had been put in place to stop people driving over it.
She said it hadn't stopped people from walking close to the area.
Whakarewarewa Village general manager Mike Gibbons said the village is temporarily closed while WorkSafe and the Rotorua Lakes Council look into the accident.
He said he understands the couple are from Perth, Australia, and had been visiting family in New Zealand.
The village's "first priority" is to support the couple and their family, Gibbons said.
"Whakarewarewa Village is our home. When we welcome our visitors into our home, and onto our land, we are their kaitiaki, and that is why everyone at Whakarewarewa is distressed at the incident that unfolded yesterday afternoon."
Gibbons described the sinkhole as being around 2m long, 1m wide and 1m deep.
"It appears the ground may have been compromised following the recent heavy rainfall."
Rotorua Lakes Council said other roads in the village will be checked as a precaution.
WorkSafe said it has inspectors at the scene on Friday and they're making initial inquiries.
Sinkhole 'very normal' for village
GNS Science volcanologist Brad Scott told 1News the sinkhole is part of a "very normal process in the area".
He explained sinkholes occur because steam rises up from depth and mixes with groundwater at a depth of 3-4m. There it forms an acid solution that eats the soil and rock, creating a cavity which ultimately collapses.
Thursday's sinkhole is also "very similar" to other collapsed holes in the village.
"This one just happens to be under a road."
Scott described sinkholes as a well-known and common hazard in geothermal areas and said in the years and decades ahead there will be more collapsed holes.
He said they're managed "very well" by being closed off by fencing.
SHARE ME