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The first indication Malcolm McKenzie had of his predicament was when a neighbor urgently banged on his door and told him his beloved Mini had fallen into a opening.

"I stepped outside expecting a minor dip under a tire or something like that. But when I went out to take a look, I understood, oh, that really is a proper hole," he explained.

His automobile had descended into a 3-metre wide opening, likely caused by a mineshaft collapse, and McKenzie has endured 25 days stuck in a bureaucratic "nightmare" trying to determine how to extricate his car.

The Main Issue: Unclaimed Property

The hitch is that the property isn't registered. The local council has stated it can't remove the barriers blocking off the hole until property rights had been established. "It's quite a difficult situation," said McKenzie, 36, a freelance designer. "It's red tape everywhere."

McKenzie has resided in the area in Redruth for about a decade and in fact has a designated spot beside his house, but it is too narrow to be useful so he started leaving his car outside a local bakery. He had checked with both the shop and the council that he wouldn't get a ticket.

"I had finally reached a point like I was getting somewhere, I had a dependable little car that was economical and easy to keep on the road. It signified I could finally focus on trying to put money aside to take my child on her aspirational journey to Japan someday. She's constantly dreamed to go."

The Incident and Aftermath

Then arrived that loud rapping on Saturday 1 November. "My neighbour was quite panicked. The officers turned up and secured the area off. We all had to remain in the houses because we couldn't leave without passing by the hole. The highways people came out, put the fence up, and then they came out and put a additional barrier up around it as well."

It is thought the hole may be an unfortunate remnant of Pednandrea Mine, a disused copper and tin mine.

McKenzie believed he would be without his car for a few days. But that short time have now become weeks.

A Possible Resolution

An conclusion may be approaching. The council has said it will work with McKenzie to – briefly – remove the fences to allow the Mini to be removed. He commented: "They have agreed to work with my insurance company's retrieval crew and try to schedule a date and an suitable way of getting it out that ensures no anybody at risk."

The car has been significantly harmed and is likely to be written off. "At least I can say my Mini went out in style – not everyone can claim their car was swallowed by the Earth itself," McKenzie noted.

Council Response

A representative from the authorities expressed it felt sorry with McKenzie. But it added: "The ground giving way did not occur on council land. We have secured the location and advised the vehicle owner that we will organize to lift the fence to allow him to recover the vehicle.

"As the land is unregistered, our safety measures will remain in place until land ownership has been established, and we will continue to observe the surrounding area to guarantee everyone's security."