A16 closed until Monday after lorry fire at Crowland melts road

Yesterday's lorry fire has led to an emergency road closure after the A16 was melted.

The HGV caught fire near the Crowland roundabout on Thursday evening, with no casualties reported despite reports of explosions at the scene.

Now, Lincolnshire County Council has announced an emergency road closure after severe heat damaged both sides of the A16.

The temperatures involved in the fire were so high that they melted the surface of the road, and various materials from the lorry itself fused with the surface.

Emergency engineering teams are currently working to get the road back in commission as quickly as possible, but the council says it is a large-scale job and will require a complete resurface of the affected area.

The A16 will therefore be closed for the remainder of today (Friday), Saturday and Sunday - and is due to reopen at some stage on Monday, with an exact time yet unknown.

Richard Fenwick, head of highways asset and local management services for the county council, said: "The severity of the fire and the amount of damage it caused across both sides of the carriageway has meant that we simply cannot operate this road at the moment.

"We have emergency teams working hard to get this road repaired and back in order for the road users who use this route. Naturally, we are working as quickly as we can, but a large repair such as this will take a few days to complete.

"In the meantime, a diversionary route will be in place with clear signage to direct traffic around the area. Whilst this is happening, I would like to thank everyone for their patience as we carry out this urgent repair."

Fire crews had earlier extinguished the fire using hose reel jets and fire fighting foam.

Visit one.network to stay up to date with information about the closure.