Enormous Guangzhou sinkhole swallows up buildings (VIDEO)

Residents living in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou were shocked when an enormous sinkhole emerged near a subway construction site, devouring five shops and tearing apart one building. Miraculously, no one has been killed.

The Shanghaiist reports that the collapsed area around the massive hole measures about 1,000 square feet across and is an impressive 30 feet deep. The hole appears to be expanding.

The Guardian has posted a rather striking photo gallery of the hole here. Three hundred citizens have been evacuated from the area.

Read more from GlobalPost: Fun photo: Giant sinkhole found under bed

Deadly sinkholes make the news on a regular basis, a phenomenon that can be triggered both by the whims of nature and by human activity.

In January of last year, a small sinkhole in the Russian city of Bryansk killed a toddler when it suddenly emerged on an innocent looking city street.

Meanwhile in Ohio, a sinkhole spanning four football fields suddenly swallowed a freeway in November of last year, possibly prompted by sand dredging below the earth.

The most famous sinkhole in recent history? The prize goes to a monstrous chasm in Guatemala City, a 30-story-deep pit that appears to have been provoked by tropical storm Agatha.