RUSH-HOUR traffic was brought to a standstill on the outskirts of Newton Abbot today after a lorry appeared to be on fire on the A380.

The Exeter-bound carriageway was clogged with queues of crawling traffic from 7.30am when a Viridor tanker-like truck became engulfed in smoke.

A string of 999 calls from motorists suggested the vehicle’s engine was on fire – but firefighters arriving at the scene confirmed there was no fire just off the Kingsteignton slip road on to the busy dual carriageway.

The smoke is thought to have been caused by the truck’s turbo charger failing, sending oil on to a hot engine.

Fire crews from Newton Abbot were called as a precaution, but their blaze-extinguishing services were not required.

One motorist put out by the hold-up said: ‘The disruption caused was quite extensive. The queues of traffic extended as far as the eye could see.’