A truck hut which was swallowed by a chasm in Japan two weeks ago was located in a nearby sewer pipe, according to the authorities.
Drone images suggest that a human body is inside the cabin, but it is not clear if it is that of the 74 -year -old driver missing from the truck.
The chasm, which is now 40 m (131 feet) in diameter, opened at an intersection of the road to Yashio City near Tokyo. It is believed that he is caused by a sewer break.
The research teams are unable to enter the 5 m wide hose due to a continuous water flow and high levels of hydrogen or sewer, said the governor of Saitama Motoiro Ono.
They will have to install a temporary diversion hose to stop the water flow and access the truck. This process could take three months, said Ono.
While the rescuers were able to draw the loading platform from the abyss truck, they could not reach the cabin that had the driver.
The driver was able to communicate with the rescuers shortly after falling into the abyss on January 28, but the contact was lost when the truck was buried more in the ground and the debris.
On Sunday, the authorities moved their search from the abyss to the nearby sewer hose, where part of a driver’s seat was found.
The chasm initially measured 10 m wide and 5 m deep, but it has since quadrupled in size after merging with another nearby chasm.
While the crater continues to undergo, the authorities asked residents nearby to evacuate their houses, fearing other caves.
Officials also asked 1.2 million residents of the Saitama prefecture to reduce their water consumption, including the reduction of showers and laundry, to limit the water flowing in underground pipes.
The water flow and other collapses of roads have hampered the research operation, which has been suspended more than once from security problems.
The range wells are increasingly common in Japanese cities, because many have an aging waste water pipeline infrastructure.
Officials say he could take two or three years to repair the breaking of the sewers.
