Tourist thought 'you're gone' as he fell down 30ft sinkhole that left his BMW teetering above him

Tourist thought 'you're gone' as he fell down 30ft sinkhole that left his BMW teetering above him Ex-miner Ian Haynes was preparing to conclude his two-week campervan holiday in Cornwall when he fell down a gaping sinkhole that had opened below his BMW A former miner who plunged 30 feet down a massive sinkhole after it unexpectedly appeared under his BMW thought his "time was over" when the ground opened up beneath him. Ian Haynes, 62, was enjoying a holiday in the Higher Trevaskis Caravan and Camping Park, in Connor Downs, Cornwall, in July when the gaping hole opened up below his parked car. He plunged what he believed was four stories before landing in a pool of water, while his car teetered at the opening above him. The former miner, who is from Nottinghamshire, thought he was "gone" as he landed in the murky depths below the campsite car park, and waited nearly an hour for a 60-strong emergency team to pluck him out. The pothole-sized opening under Ian's car unexpectedly swallowed the granddad after rapidly growing inside from under the wheel of his BMW. Within the space of a day it had expanded to the size of a vehicle. During the fall, Ian said he had just enough time to consider himself a goner before he hit the water below. He told CornwallLive: "I thought, 'you're gone, mate, your time is over'. I was near the door [of the car] and I just went through the concrete. "You can imagine, I'm going down a hole, looking up and seeing a car wheel above my head and this hole is getting smaller and smaller. My grandchildren were playing in that spot while we were on holiday and the caravan next door to us was two retired old ladies who had to walk past that spot to go to the toilet every day." Ian said that, while he is physically recovered from the incident, he is "still suffering" with wobbles caused by the shock of the fall. He added: "I'm still suffering and at 4am I'm jumping out of bed and feeling like I'm falling down the hole again." He was sent tumbling down the hole the day before he was due to leave his campsite, and after calling the site owner to investigate the still modestly sized opening when he noticed the front of his car had "dropped down". He spent 55 minutes clinging to the walls of the sinkhole fearing that any moment could be his last as he desperately awaited the arrival of emergency services. He was eventually pulled to the service by dozens of fire service workers who lowered a rope and safety harness down to him. Recounting the rescue, he said: "I knew what to do, Their job was easy. They threw me a rope down and, like a plastic nappy on a safety harness, I knew how to fasten it and they winched me back up. " While he exited the hole with a few cuts and scrapes, the emotional toll has remained in the form of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). He praised the way the ordeal was handled, saying staff were "incredibly caring and concerned" for him. Devon and Cornwall Police said: "Officers attended Gwinear Road shortly after 6pm on 24 July to provide support to emergency services who were responding to a report of a man having fallen into a sinkhole. A number of people were cleared from the area for safety." A spokesperson for Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service said: "Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service was called to Connor Downs, Hayle, on July 24 at around 6pm. "Firefighters used line rescue equipment to rescue a casualty who was approximately 30ft down a sinkhole. The casualty was left in the care of the ambulance service." A spokesperson for Higher Trevaskis Caravan and Camping Park said: "We would like to thank everyone involved in the rescue and also the experts involved in making the site safe for our customers which is always our number one priority. "An unrecorded, historical mining feature opened up in an isolated area of the park. Our emergency safety protocols were activated instantly, and the emergency services were called which lead to the rescue of a guest. "The said guest was taken to hospital with cuts and bruises and given the all clear by the hospital, returning here soon after. Specialist engineers are already managing the permanent capping process."