Combine harvester fire, broken down horse box and crash cause A1(M) traffic misery

Firefighters at Scotch Corner (Image: Richmond Fire Station)

Motorists suffered severe delays on the A1(M) southbound following a series of incident including a combine harvester fire, horsebox breakdown and a crash.

In the first incident a horse box broke down on a slip road at Scotch Corner shortly before lunchtime.

At about the same time firefighters travelling behind a combine harvester carried on the back of a truck noticed smoke coming from the agricultural machine.

They managed to pull the vehicle off beyond the Scotch Corner junction and waited for a crew from Darlington to help them deal with the incident.

Tailbacks several miles long formed on the Southbound carraigeway.

A spokesperson for the North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said: “Our crew from the Richmond station were mobile in the area when they were following a combine harvester being transported on a truck.

“They noticed smoke issuing from a combine harvester (there were no flames) and managed to flag down the driver on the motorway just South of the Scotch Corner sliproad on the southbound carriageway.

“The Richmond fire crew then waited for a fire crew from Darlington, so they could get a load of water on it all at once.

“Because it was the hopper that was full of grain – that’s where the heat was coming from.”

The spokesperson added, the combined harvester was being towed away because of difficulties with it a number of weeks ago.

“Something obviously aggravated it in transit and set it going again. The last we heard is they have moved the truck off the A1(M) onto a side road with guidance from the police.