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The initial sign the local man had of his predicament was when a neighbor loudly knocked on his door and told him his beloved Mini had fallen into a opening.

"I went out expecting a small pothole under a wheel or something similar. But when I went out to take a look, I realized, oh, that truly is a proper hole," he explained.

His vehicle had descended into a 10-foot wide gap, possibly caused by a mineshaft collapse, and McKenzie has spent 25 days caught in a administrative "difficult situation" trying to determine how to retrieve his car.

The Core Issue: Unclaimed Property

The complication is that the land isn't registered. The authorities has said it won't take down the barriers blocking off the sinkhole until land ownership had been established. "It's a bit of a nightmare," said McKenzie, 36, a self-employed designer. "There's bureaucracy at every turn."

McKenzie has resided in the neighborhood in Redruth for about 10 years and actually has a designated spot beside his house, but it is not wide enough to be useful so he started leaving his car outside a nearby bakery. He had checked with both the shop and the council that he would avoid receiving a parking fine.

"I had finally reached a point like I was making progress, I had a dependable small vehicle that was fuel-efficient and easy to keep on the road. It meant I could at last focus on trying to put money aside to take my daughter on her aspirational journey to Japan someday. She's always wanted to go."

The Event and Aftermath

Then arrived that knock on the door on Saturday 1 November. "The person next door was very alarmed. The officers arrived and closed the zone off. We all had to remain in the homes because we can't get out without going past the collapse. The road crew came out, put the barrier up, and then they returned and put a second fence up surrounding it as well."

It is believed the hole may be an unlucky remnant of Pednandrea Mine, a abandoned copper and tin mine.

McKenzie believed he would be separated from his vehicle for a few days. But that short time have now become weeks.

A Possible Resolution

An conclusion may be approaching. The authorities has stated it will work with McKenzie to – temporarily – remove the fences to allow the Mini to be removed. He commented: "They have agreed to assist my insurer's retrieval crew and try to schedule a date and an acceptable way of extracting it that ensures no anybody at danger."

The vehicle has been significantly harmed and is likely to be declared a total loss. "At least I can say my Mini met its end in a memorable way – not everyone can claim their vehicle was eaten by the Earth itself," McKenzie remarked.

Authority Response

A representative from the authorities said it sympathised with McKenzie. But it said: "This collapse did not occur on public property. We have secured the location and informed the vehicle owner that we will organize to lift the fence to allow him to retrieve the vehicle.

"Since no one owns the land, our barriers will stay up until land ownership has been established, and we will continue to monitor the vicinity to guarantee everyone's security."