A Teynham pensioner is leading the fight to prevent a proposed £9 million extension to a depot near his home from going ahead.

David Gabriel, 72, said the planned development at the Fowler Welch Coolchain (FWC) distribution plant in London Road will add to already “unbearable” noise levels in the area.

The retired granddad-of-eight said he intends to rally fellow residents and start a petition to stop the scheme in its tracks.

He said: “Lorries run to and from the depot 364 days a year. “They run all day and night, making it impossible to sleep at home in the summer with the windows open.

“The lorries come by one after another making a hell of a noise, and the vehicles themselves are getting bigger and bigger.”

The current proposal, which has gone to public consultation, is to extend the warehouse at the 6,5032 sq metre depot by 4,858 sq metres.

There are also plans for extra car parking spaces and loading bays to accommodate up to 15 additional lorry movements a day. The distribution firm currently manages 353 lorry movements a day.

It’s anticipated the development will lead to 60 more jobs at the plant which currently employs 231 staff.

In a planning statement drawn-up by Paul Sharpe Associates on behalf of the company which has branches nationwide, it said the extension will lead to “relatively few” additional HGV movements.

It also claimed it would have an “insignificant effect on the operations of the local road network”.

Mr Gabriel, who has lived at his 450-year-old, four-bedroom detached property in London Road since 1981, claimed even a slight increase in traffic outside his house could cause large problems.

He said: “The lorries are so big they make the house shake. It’s not helping my health and I suffer stress because of it.

“I had major heart surgery six years ago and since then I’ve had a further eight operations.” The current public consultation is due to end on Tuesday, January 28.