M11 northbound to remain closed for hours near Cambridge after lorry fire
The northbound carriageway of the M11 south of Cambridge is expected to remain closed for repairs this afternoon after a lorry fire this morning (Thursday, December 6).
The driver of the lorry was treated for smoke inhalation and taken to Addenbrooke’s Hospital after the blaze broke out.
Emergency services were called at around 5.40am to the lorry, which was ablaze on the hard shoulder of the M11 northbound near junction 11 for Cambridge.
A fuel spillage caused the fire to spread to the southbound carriageway too, and the road was closed in both directions as fire crews dealt with the fire. About five miles of delays built up between junctions 9 and 13.
A diversion was put in place for northbound traffic via the A505 and A10, which enabled drivers to rejoin the M11 at junction 11.
Drivers heading south were held in the queue until the fire was out, which took a couple of hours.
Crews from Royston and Bishop’s Stortford joined those from Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service to deal with the incident.
The southbound carriageway reopened before 9am, although long delays persisted, but work to repair the northbound carriageway means that is expected to stay closed for much of the afternoon. Efforts to reopen a northbound lane were unsuccessful “due to the damage caused to the road surface”, National Highways East tweeted.
In a statement, National Highways added: “Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service led the response to an incident involving a lorry which caught fire on the northbound carriageway and has now been extinguished.
“There are long delays on the northbound carriageway between J9 and J10 as traffic approaches the closure. The road is expected to remain closed throughout the afternoon for specialist recovery and extensive carriageway resurfacing.
“Traffic within the closure are currently being turned around from the rear of the queue and released back to J10 where they can resume their journeys. Traffic officers are working as quickly as possible to ensure all traffic is turned. Please remain in your vehicle and await further instruction.”
