'Sinkhole' in Mississippi IHOP parking lot swallows at least 12 cars

Diners at a Meridian, Mississippi, IHOP were interrupted Saturday night when a giant hole opened up in the restaurant's parking lot, swallowing up more than a dozen cars.

The hole is 15 feet deep and longer than a football field, and investigators said an underground drain pipe caused the collapse, but they don't know why yet. Public safety director Buck Roberts told WTOK he doesn't know if it can be called a sinkhole, but officials hope to start removing the trapped vehicles on Monday.

Restaurant patron Noah Mathis told ABC News an employee ran to the window and yelled "Earthquake," causing everyone inside to panic. "Everything was sudden and quick," he said. "They were slamming their forks down from eating and they were sprinting outside as quick as they could." No one was injured, and investigators said that since the IHOP is new, they haven't ruled out the possibility that construction of the restaurant played a factor in the collapse.

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