Lorry fire causes traffic misery in Hodnet
Thursday 24th March 2011, 2:02PM GMT.
Motorists in north Shropshire faced misery after a major road was forced to close for nearly 10 hours following a lorry fire.
The A53 Hodnet bypass was closed both ways between Tern Hill and Hodnet yesterday following the fire which began shortly before 11am.
The fire took place by the Espley Roundabout and involved a lorry containing about 11 tonnes of straw.
Police said diversions were put in place for motorists while the road was closed until 8.30pm.
Steve Palin, from Hodnet fire station, said: “The driver was waved down by somebody who saw smoke coming from the lorry. By the time they had stopped the straw was on fire.
“It is not yet known what the cause of the fire was.
“I should think the lorry is pretty much destroyed because the fire spread to the cab. The driver was all right.”
Maria Wilkinson, a spokeswoman for West Mercia Police, said: “Police attended a lorry fire on the A53 Hodnet by the A442.
“The lorry was laden with bales of hay which had caught fire.
“Although the lorry was on a grass verge, the A53 Hodnet bypass was closed between Tern Hill and Hodnet for safety reasons.”
Fire crews from Hodnet and Market Drayton, a water carrier from Bridgnorth and incident command unit from Shrewsbury attended the scene.
Firefighters tackled the lorry blaze by wearing breathing gear and used two hose reel jets to finally put out the fire.
By James Pugh
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