THESE experts went beneath the streets of Abingdon in February 2009 to investigate a curious problem: the town war memorial was very slowly falling over.

Readings taken since 2002 revealed the structure was moving a few millimetres each year, sparking fears about where it would end.

So, in 2009, the town council undertook excavation work to find out if there were underground chambers causing the problem.

Engineers Hockley and Dawson spent a day carrying out exploratory work on the 88-year-old war memorial in The Square.

Project manager Steve Rich said: “It’s Abingdon’s answer to Pisa, but now we have to look at the war memorial as the tilt has got more pronounced.

"We want to keep it and ensure that it’s safe and structurally sound."

Having located a weak spot beneath the structure, in December 2010 the council paid to have a resin type-of material injected into the soil which then expanded and solidified to form a solid foundation.

The work was successful and the memorial is now safe once again.

Why haven't they done that in Pisa?...