Sinkhole opens up after water main bursts in Newport

A burst water main on Sydney's Northern Beaches has caused a large sinkhole to open up.

Attunga Road in Newport was completely flooded this morning and Sydney Water were called in to shut off the main.

Drone footage showed water gushing from a burst pipe and shooting high into the air, raining down on the street and properties below.

The deluge ran down the hill and flooded Barrenjoey Road below.

"My son had his car parked over this hole this morning and he felt some movement under the ground and all of a sudden the thing just blew up," northern beaches local Tom Maunder told 9News.

For more than two hours, thousands of litres of water rushed from the burst pipe.

The road surface has buckled, and a sinkhole has formed, however no properties are under threat at this stage.

"We are aware that there's been a prolonged dry weather in this area and that causes the soil and the pipes to dry out which causes movement in the ground which leads to a break," Emma Demo from Sydney Water explained.

The pipes have burst at least three times before. In 2018 homes were evacuated in the middle of the night.