Bullets explode as ammunition lorry burns

An investigation has been launched into how an ammunition lorry caught fire on a busy road, causing an area of countryside to be sealed off.

An investigation has been launched into how an ammunition lorry caught fire on a busy road, causing an area of countryside to be sealed off.

As fire crews fought to bring 15ft flames under control on the A535 road near Holmes Chapel in Cheshire, bullets inside the articulated lorry started to explode.

Police set up a cordon stretching several hundred yards around the fire and residents in isolated dwellings near the village of Twemlow Green were warned to stay indoors.

The blaze was extinguished after an operation lasting around two hours. A fire service spokesman said tere had been small explosions going off continuously as they fought the fire.

Army experts were called to the scene and the wreckage of the lorry was expected to be left for several hours while it cooled.

Cheshire Police said that the ammunition was part of a legitimate cargo and was thought to be mainly .22 small arms ammunition.

The driver escaped unhurt.