A FELIXSTOWE man is being treated in hospital today after losing part of his foot in a horrific crash on the A14.The 40-year-old lorry driver was trapped in the wreckage of his lorry for more than an hour and had to be cut free by fire crews before being flown to Ipswich Hospital by the air ambulance.

A FELIXSTOWE man is being treated in hospital today after losing part of his foot in a horrific crash on the A14.

The 40-year-old lorry driver was trapped in the wreckage of his lorry for more than an hour and had to be cut free by fire crews before being flown to Ipswich Hospital by the air ambulance.

The crash, which involved another lorry and a Fiat Brava, caused long tailbacks. It also prompted fresh calls for contingency plans to deal with major accidents on the A14 after it took nine hours to completely reopen the road.

The collision happened on the Bury St Edmunds-bound carriageway near Claydon at around midday yesterday.

Jeremy Mauger, a Suffolk Accident and Rescue Service (SARS) doctor, was called to the scene to assist paramedics during the rescue operation.

He said: "I was called to administer extra pain relief. The ambulance crews can only give a certain amount but I was able to help anaesthetise the man and give him some relief from very severe pain.

"Everyone on the scene, the fire crews, the ambulance crews, the air ambulance, all did a fantastic job.

"Lorry extrications can be very difficult and this was no exception. The man was trapped for well over an hour."

In the force of the impact the container of the crushed lorry, sheared from its bolts, slid forward and compressed the cab into the lorry in front, trapping the driver between the two containers.

Three ambulances, two ambulance officers, a Suffolk Accident Rescue Service medic and the air ambulance were dispatched to the scene.

The other lorry driver and the Fiat driver were taken to hospital with minor injuries and the situation was complicated further by another minor collision shortly after the first.

A Rover and a Transit van collided and the two drivers were taken to hospital with minor injuries.

Thousands of drivers were caught up in the ensuing traffic chaos with tailbacks up to Wherstead and the Orwell Bridge.

It was the latest in a series of crashes on the A14 which have led to major delays and has sparked fresh calls for a northern bypass for Ipswich.

Guy McGregor, former chairman of Suffolk County Council's highways committee, said: "The fact is we have got to manage the road better. We have to have diversions quicker.

"We have got to think about whether there should be loops across the road there so the other carriageway can be used for single carriageway traffic if there are any problems."

Bob Feltwell, chief executive of the Suffolk Chamber of Commerce, has already written to Suffolk County Council calling for contingency plans to be put in place to deal with the disruption.

Mr Feltwell said: "We really do need to improve the infrastructure in that area. A northern bypass would be an alternative route to handle the increase in the volume of traffic."

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