A landlady has described how her village pub “shook visibly” as a juggernaut smashed into the building twice after getting stuck in a road closure.

Villagers watched in dismay as the driver, who was trying to turn the vehicle round, backed into the function room of the George Inn, Leeds.

Some were shouting at the driver to stop as he inched closer to the wall, attempting to manoeuvre his way out of the Shepherd Neame pub’s car park.

The incident has reopened the issue of lorries ignoring the HGV ban on the B2163 and calls for a relief road to take the pressure off roads in south east Maidstone.

Now Jason and Debbie Tharp, who run the George, have a nervous wait for the outcome of a surveyor’s inspection of the Haybarn function room.

The driver, which was pulling a container with the shipping company Maersk’s livery on the side, backed into the Tharps’ premises on Sunday.

Mrs Tharp said: “We woke on Sunday morning to find the road had been closed without any warning, which is pretty usual, to fix a water leak.

“Then, at about 11.30am, the HGV came reversing into the car park. A couple of people who were just up the road at the village hall clearing up after the panto were shouting at him to stop because they could see what was happening.

“He hit the Haybarn twice. The first hit was a soft one and the second one was harder. The building visibly shook when he hit it. He also took out one of our CCTV cameras.

“The driver, who was British, was really, really apologetic and left his full details with us. He was very shaken by it - he seemed like a nice man.

"There is a crack running right down the wall.

“Now we have to wait to see what the surveyor says and whether we can still use the Haybarn. It is so frustrating - I’m a bit beside myself to be honest.”

Kent County Council member for the area Cllr Gary Cooke said: “I hope that Jason and Debbie are not out of pocket for the losses they might sustain because of this and the company responsible will give them a swift and sensible offer.

“But it highlights yet again what I and many others in the area have been saying for years.

“Firstly, the lorry drivers ignore the signs at the Leeds Castle roundabout and travel through the village in direct contravention of the weight restriction there.

“Secondly, because the weight restriction is not enforced there is no deterrent to drivers.

“Thirdly, south east Maidstone’s road cannot cope with the extra traffic it now has to take and we need a relief road that would help to keep the roads flowing and prevent this thing from happening.”

South East Water, which is carrying out a water leak repair on the B2163, was contacted for a comment.