A truck cab that fell into a widening sinkhole in Yashio, Japan, late last month has been found. Officials believe the body of the unnamed 74-year-old driver who went missing when the truck fell in is still inside it.

The hole opened up on Jan. 28, right as the unnamed missing truck driver drove over it. The driver was able to remain in contact with the surface for about three hours, after which contact was lost. 

The sinkhole was about 32 feet wide and 16 feet deep when it first opened, but has since grown to encompass a second sinkhole and expand further. It is now about 131 feet wide and 49 feet deep, according to English-language news site The Mainichi.

Workers were able to retrieve the truck’s cargo bed soon after recovery efforts began, according to the Kyodo News news agency, but not the cabin compartment. 

Search efforts continued, and eventually a drone was able to fly into a nearby sewer pipe and locate the truck cab, officials in Saitama Prefecture said Tuesday, according to The Mainichi.

Officials believe they have also found the driver, with a “human-like figure” visible inside the cab, prefectural officials said according to The Japan Times.

SEE ALSO: Elderly truck driver stuck in sinkhole in Japan for days

Recovery efforts could take months — sewage water is still flowing around the cabin and there is also toxic hydrogen sulfide gas present, complicating recovery efforts, Saitama Prefecture Governor Motohiro Ono said Tuesday, according to The Asahi Shimbun.

• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.