Hauliers hit hard by fierce weather
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by Tim Maughan • Ratifiers felt the brunt of the storms which have battered the UK over the last fortnight. High winds and driving rain made lorry driving a nightmare across the country. with widespread flooding and several road closures. The A66 Trans-Pennine route was shut to high-sided vehicles for 10 hours last Saturday, and ferry services from southern ports were delayed.
Stuart Riley, owner of Cornwall-based Riley's Transport, says: "We had a drawbar trailer and a tractor unit and trailer waiting at Folkestone ready to sail to Boulogne. The ship could not leave the port for four hours because it was so rough. We have had to use the Channel Tunnel for three trips." He adds: "The weather does not usually affect us like this."
South Wales was worst hit, where flooding was the most serious in 20 years.
The deluge stranded a Rhys Davies truck near Abergavenny on Saturday. The lorry was on its way from Caerphilly to Oswestry, carrying building lintels. The vehicle became stuck after the River Usk burst its banks.
A spokesman says the lorry was recovered after water levels subsided on Friday evening and towed back to the company's Cardiff depot. "This is the first time that something like this has happened to us," he says.