Devon road could be shut for weeks after lorry crash

A garage has been left in a "precarious" state

A Devon road has been closed after a lorry crashed into a garage leaving the structure "teetering precariously". The closure is currently expected to remain in place for more than a month.

On Monday afternoon (September 16), an articulated lorry crashed into a garage next to a house on Uffculme High Street. Photos show the garage has been left with significant damage and the area has been sealed off by the police and Devon County Council.

One resident told DevonLive the building has been left looking unstable and may need to be demolished. He said: "A building has been badly damaged, it's reported it was hit by a vehicle, in all likelihood a lorry, on Monday. The fire service attended and presumably police as well, given the tape.

"It's the second time the building, a garage, has been damaged. It's teetering precariously and the road was shut to vehicles by Devon County Council, presumably until the garage is demolished."

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Devon & Cornwall Police confirmed that officers were called to the scene at around 2:10pm on Monday to reports of a collision. The fire service attended and called police to help with traffic management while the area was made safe.

A spokesperson for the force said: "Police were called at around 2.10pm on Monday 16 September following reports of a collision involving an artic lorry and a garage building on High Street, Uffculme.

"We were later called by fire following concerns about an unstable wall hanging over the road and assisted with traffic management and keeping the public at a safe distance."

The road closure means school-run traffic to Uffculme School just up the road is being diverted, with vehicle access only possible from the top of Chapel Hill.

In a post on its Facebook page, Uffculme School said: "Please be aware that due to a vehicle collision with a building earlier today, Chapel Hill is now closed to all vehicles at the bottom of the hill on the junction with High Street. There is pedestrian access only.

"If you are driving to the school, please access the school from the B3181 and the top of Chapel Hill, do not attempt to drive through the village."

Devon County Council is anticipating that the closure could remain in place for more than five weeks. On its live roadworks map, it says that building control asked the authority to close the road on Tuesday (September 17).

It says: "Building control have visited site today and we have now been asked to close the road, which ID Verde are setting up today." The notice estimates that the road could be closed until October 25.