NEIGHBOURS of an Trimley pensioner killed in a crash on the A14 today expressed their sorrow as they heard of his death.Known to friends as 'Nobby' Clarke, the pensioner of Great Field, Trimley St Mary, is thought to have been waiting for help in his broken-down Nissan Almera when it was struck by an articulated lorry.

NEIGHBOURS of an Trimley pensioner killed in a crash on the A14 today expressed their sorrow as they heard of his death.

Known to friends as 'Nobby' Clarke, the pensioner of Great Field, Trimley St Mary, is thought to have been waiting for help in his broken-down Nissan Almera when it was struck by an articulated lorry.

The tragedy happened around 11.25pm yesterday.

Mr Clarke, who is believed to have been in his late 70s or early 80s, lived alone in his Trimley flat.

It is thought he had relatives in Lincolnshire, but neighbours described him as an independent character who liked living on his own.

One man, who did not wish to be named, said: "He was a quiet old man but he always spoke to people and was friendly enough.

"I think he liked living alone. He liked to retain his independence."

Another neighbour said: "It is very upsetting."

He said Mr Clarke was a regular at the Hand in Hand at Trimley St Martin and was also an occasional visitor to the Conservative Club in Felixstowe.

He had lived in Great Field for 13 years.

His biggest passion was said to have been sailing. He had two boats, a 21ft and a 13ft craft, at Woolverstone on the Shotley Peninsula.

It emerged this morning that police had received reports Mr Clarke's vehicle was stranded minutes before the collision.

His Nissan was turned on to its roof by the impact, which happened on the stretch of the A14 at Levington between the Felixstowe interchange and the Bucklesham turn-off.

The driver of the red Scania lorry, a 50-year-old man from Walsall in the West Midlands, was uninjured.

His vehicle had been heading toward Felixstowe dock at the time of the collision.

An investigation has been launched into the cause of the crash.

Firefighters were called to the crash scene to free Mr Clarke from his car.

Suffolk Fire assistant divisional officer Dave Pedersen said: "The car was heavily damaged. It had a large impact from the lorry. It's an unfortunate accident and you feel for the family."

The A14 was closed Felixstowe-bound for about three-and-a-half hours and traffic diverted along the A12 to Brightwell.

As the clean-up operation was carried out, a second collision happened when another lorry collided with a Highways Agency "crash cushion" which was alerting motorists to the accident scene ahead.

The trailer was being used to warn of lane closures when the lorry was in collision with the back of it.

The collision at about 5.40am on the A14 at Nacton forced the closure of the inside lane and caused further traffic delays.

Police said the road was cleared by about 7.50am.

Elsewhere there was a third collision between a car and a lorry at 9.26am on the A12 at Martlesham just before the Bucklesham turn-off.

One of the vehicles hit the central reservation in the collision, and the road was partially blocked.

Police are appealing for anyone who saw the fatal accident on the A14 near Levington to telephone the traffic unit at Martlesham Heath on 01473 613500.