The giant hole appeared in the middle of the road after a sewer line ruptured during heavy rain

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

An off-duty sheriff’s deputy has died and two other people hurt when two vehicles plunged into a water-filled sinkhole in San Antonio, Texas.

The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office on Monday identified the victim as 69-year-old deputy Dora Linda Nishihara, who was a courthouse bailiff.

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A crane was used to retrieve her car from water about 12-feet deep. Nishihara’s body was inside the vehicle.

Sheriff’s spokesman James Keith says Nishihara was not working on Sunday when her vehicle went into the sinkhole. Utility officials say the sinkhole appeared after a sewer line ruptured during heavy rain earlier on Sunday.

Authorities said two passers-by rescued a driver after another vehicle that went into the sinkhole on Sunday night. That driver and one of his rescuers were treated for minor injuries.