A Huntingdon firm stepped in to help after a lorry fire closed the A14 at Catworth on Saturday.

Staff from haulage and waste management firm Mick George were called by emergency crews after a lorry carrying recyclable waste caught fire and pulled into a lay-by at the side of the busy road at about 12.45pm.

Fire crews from Huntingdon, Sawtry and a water carrier from Ramsey joined a crew from Thrapston, in Northamptonshire, at the scene, along with police officers who closed the road to allow crews to tackle the fire.

Mick George was then called to see if it could assist with removing the dangerous waste. On arrival, staff, together with firefighters and police, discussed a solution to get the road open again.

Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service watch commander, Gareth Boyd, said: “Fire crews put out the fire enough for the lorry to be driven in a police and fire convey to Mick George’s site at Ringstead Grange. Once there, the trailer was emptied and we could spread the waste out and put the hot spots out completely.

“Taking it safely to the site meant the road could be reopened. If we’d have stayed firefighting on the road it would have been closed for a further two hours at least, so we’re very grateful to Mick George for their help and support.”

The cause of the fire was accidental.

Jon Stump, finance director at Mick George, said: “We were only too happy to offer our assistance and provide a safe area for firefighters to deal with the remainder of the fire safely and allow the road to be reopened to prevent further disruption for motorists.”