The Peterborough Evening Telegraph
FOUR DIE AS SNOW CAUSES CHAOS
•Fata• crashes on the A47 and A15 •Thousands of children at home as schools shut •A1 closed as snow piles up... and there’s more on the way
Four people died as snow and ice caused chaos on the roads in the Peterborough area.
All four deaths occurred within a few hours on Tuesday, with three fatalities after a head-on crash between a car and a lorry on the A15 at Baston and another after a collision on the A47 between Sutton and Wansford.
The victim of the A47 crash has been named by police as John Paul Capstick (57) from Cox Close, Wisbech.
Tuesday morning also saw a school bus crash, while a flurry of snowfall left motorists stuck for hours on the A1 between Peterborough and Stamford on Wednesday morning.
With Peterborough receiving up to 10 inches of snow and temperatures plummeting to -9°C due to the so called ‘Beast from the East’, many city schools closed yesterday, and there is no sign of a let up with more snow set to fall for the rest of the week.
Lincolnshire was also badly affected, with police there announcing a ‘critical incident’ had been declared after more than 70 traffic-related incidents were reported yesterday.
The crash in Baston involving a blue Renault Clio and white Scania lorry took place at 6.15am on Tuesday morning near the Waterside Garden Centre.
Lead investigator, Sergeant Helen Alcock said: “Sadly three people have lost their lives and several people have faced the shock of witnessing or coming across the scene.
“I appeal to anyone who was driving in the area or saw the collision to contact me. I also ask if drivers can check their dash cams for footage of either of the vehicles involved. This will help our investigation.”
None of the victims have yet been named by police.
Anybody who saw the collision, a blue Renault Clio travelling southbound or a white Scania lorry travelling northbound towards Bourne, is asked to call Lincolnshire Police on 101 quoting incident 39 of February 27.
The man who died on the A47 was involved in three collisions on that stretch of road on Tuesday morning.
The first took place at the at Castor roundabout at the end of the dual carriageway and the second was at the Sutton junction, with nobody hurt in either incident.
The third crash, involving five vehicles between Sutton and Wansford at around 9.45am, caused the road to be closed in both directions for an air ambulance to land.
One other person suffered a minor injury with the road reopening at around 3pm.
A Cambridgeshire police spokesperson said no arrests have been made.
Anyone who witnessed the collision should contact the Road Policing Unit on 101 quoting CC-27022018-0095.
Forty-five school children had to be helped from their bus after it collided with a car and left Custom Road, between Frognall and Stowgate near Deeping St James, at around 8.15am on Tuesday.
A Lincolnshire Police spokesman said: “None of the children are injured but they are obviously shocked.”
Speaking not long after the crash, he added: “Since about 5.45am this morning we have dealt with 20 collisions.”
After a quieter Tuesday afternoon, the roads chaos resumed early on Wednesday morning after a flurry of snow had hit Peterborough,
The deluge was so bad it forced the match at Peterborough United to be delayed 10 minutes from the end so snow from the pitch could be removed.
Unlucky motorists travelling on the A1 between Peterborough and Stamford in the early hours of Wednesday were caught out by the adverse weather, with drivers forced to wait for several hours to get through.
Gritters and road ploughs were sent out to remove the snow. A Cambridgeshire po-
lice spokesman said: “At least six HGVs jack-knifed.
“Up to 400 vehicles were trapped while the road was closed and recovery took place.”
The road was said to have reopened at around 8am yesterday morning with queues ending by 11.30am.
The A15 south of Bourne also closed for a period of time on Wednesday morning, with delays also affecting the A16 north of Peterborough.