A303 shut in Wiltshire as emergency services descend

3
Skip to next photo
1/1
Show caption
1/1
This article is brought to you by our exclusive subscriber partnership with our sister title USA Today, and has been written by our American colleagues. It does not necessarily reflect the view of The Herald.

A major Wiltshire A-road was shut amid a major emergency response to a fire on the route’s verge.

Fire crews descended on the verge of the A303 at Chadenwick Hill near Mere at around 1.30pm on Monday, August 24.

Around 100 metres of the roadside was affected by fire, with crews from Shaftesbury, Warminster, and Wincanton supported by an appliance from Westbury to tackle the blaze.

The fire service has said the road was briefly closed during the incident, but firefighters had extinguished the fire and stopped at the scene at 3.10pm.

Crews used two hose reel jets to battle the flames.

Crews at the scene on the A303. (Image: Devon and Somerset Fire Service)

In a statement, a spokesperson for Dorset and Wiltshire Fire Service said: “We were called to the A303 eastbound, at the bottom of Chadenwick Hill, at 1.36pm yesterday (August 24) for a fire affecting approximately 100 metres of roadside verge.

“Crews attended from Shaftesbury (x2), Warminster and Wincanton, together with a small 4x4 appliance from Westbury.

“Two hose reel jets were used, and the stop came in at 3.10pm. The road was briefly closed but has now been reopened.”

Get involved
with the news

Send your news & photos