Commuters faced a nightmare journey home yesterday when traffic chaos gripped the outskirts of York after a lorry shed its load of iron girders close to a busy roundabout.
The accident happened on the A1079 near the Grimston Bar roundabout and involved a lorry taking girders to Sunderland from Elvington-based construction company Monk Bridge.
The driver told police that he had set off from Elvington and had arrived at the Grimston Bar roundabout when he felt that the chains holding the girders in place had come loose.
He decided to turn back and only managed to get as far as the right-turn lane to Elvington on the A1079 before the girders came crashing down, bringing the back end of the lorry with it.
Fortunately, the driver was uninjured.
Police had to enlist the help of York Crane Hire to shift the lorry and its girders and the mammoth task lasted more than four hours.
As rush hour traffic headed towards the scene of the accident, massive queues built up, particularly on Hull Road out of York.
Updated: 08:48 Thursday, April 26, 2001
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