Kentish Express Ashford & District
Lorry with insecure load in lucky escape on M20
A lorry almost lost its load on the M20 causing a sliproad at junction 9 to be closed during rush hour.
The HGV driver noticed he had an insecure load at about 2.30pm last Thursday as he was headed towards Folkestone.
He pulled onto the hard shoulder and tried to sort out his vehicle but was unable to do so.
Police and Highways Agency staff arrived and helped him secure the load.
They closed the exit sliproad at 5pm so the lorry could be safely removed from the motorway.
The exit was reopened by 6.30pm.
Andy Clark, who was crossing the Canterbury Road bridge when the lorry got into difficulties, said: “It looked like the trailer was trying to overtake the cab although this was caused by the shape of the trailer.
“As the lorry pulled towards the hard shoulder I thought it was going to end up in the trees, but it came to rest a little short of them. The driver’s right hand side was bulging outward especially towards the top of the trailer, while the lefthand side gave the impression that it had caved in toward the centre.”
Kent Police spokesman Scarlet Jones said: “Police received reports a lorry with an insecure load had stopped on the hard shoulder of the junction 9 sliproad on the coastbound M20.
“Officers attended and the slipway was closed at 5pm in order to remove the vehicle and its load safely. The slipway was reopened by 6.22pm.”