Lorry fire causes delays on M20
Flames lick the skyline
after a lorry caught fire on the M20. Picture: Kent_999s on Twitter
This is the dramatic moment a lorry become an inferno on the M20
last night.
A stretch of the motorway was closed for more than six hours
when the HGV burst into flames near Folkestone.
Long delays built as flames licked the skyline from the lorry,
carrying large rolls of plastic insulation.
Firefighters battled to control the blaze as the road was
shut London-bound from junction 12 for Cheriton to junction
11 for Hythe.
Traffic was being diverted along the A20 from about 5.15pm, when
it was first closed.
One lane of the M20 was re-opened at about 11pm, but two lanes
remained shut while work began to remove the lorry and resurface
the road.
All lanes were re-opened at 3.30am, but the hard shoulder will
remain closed into this morning for further inspection.
Video: Smoke billows
across the M20 as crews battle the lorry blaze
The drama came just hours after
a fire in the Channel Tunnel led to Eurotunnel services being
suspended for several hours.
This added to motorists' traffic woes, with J11a for the tunnel
shut for a time last night because of heavy congestion.
Kent Fire and Rescue Service said crews were called at
5.15pm.
Around 25 firefighters using breathing apparatus and
foam managed to bring the blaze under control by about 9.30pm.
However, crews were called back at about midnight when the
lorry reignited while being moved from the motorway.
Firefighters battle the
lorry blaze on the M20. Picture: Stewart Johnson
Witness Stewart Johnson was stuck at the head of the
traffic jam.
He claimed a lorry containing a hazardous load had caught fire on
the hard shoulder after its brakes overheated.
He added: "The fire reached the height of a nearby lamp post
which eventually melted."
Kent Police said the lorry driver suffered a minor hand
injury.
Traffic builds during the
M20 lorry fire. Picture: Kent_999s on
Twitter
30/11/12
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