A driver escaped to safety when his van was partially swallowed by a sinkhole created after a water main break in The Villages.

Sean McKeown, 29, of Summerfield, had been delivering newspapers in the 2011 Toyota Sienna van at about 3:30 a.m. Wednesday on East Schwartz Boulevard on the Historic Side of The Villages when the front end of his van sank into the sinkhole.

The driver of this van escaped safely after the vehicle sank into a sinkhole on the Historic Side of The Villages.

He had been driving on East Schwartz Boulevard when “he noticed a large amount of water flowing in the roadway,” according to an incident report from the Lady Lake Police Department.

This van fell into a sinkhole created by a water main break on this Historic Side of The Villages.

He slowed down to see if he could determine where the water was coming from when the road gave out under the front end of the vehicle. He was able to safely get out of the van, which was later towed from the scene.

A crew from The Villages Utility Department arrived on the scene and shut off the water. Several homes were placed under a precautionary boil order due to the water main break.

A Villages couple found themselves in a similar predicament this past December, also on East Schwartz Boulevard.