MORE than a dozen drivers were stranded by the side of the A120 after hitting a huge pothole with metal mesh sticking out of the road.

Police were called after 13 or more cars were damaged after hitting the hole on the Harwich-bound carriageway of the A120 on Sunday evening.

Highways England was called out and the lane had to be closed for an emergency repair.

Gemma Quinn, a theatre nurse at Colchester General Hospital, said the pothole ruined her tyre.

“I was coming along the A120 towards Harwich just before 5.30pm.

She said: “The pothole was in road just opposite before The Maltings. I could see large puddle spreading across the road and knew there was a pothole there so moved out as far as I could.

“However, with on coming traffic I couldn’t move out too far and all of a sudden there was a loud thud, my car dipped and then I felt steering become difficult.

“I knew tyre had gone so pulled over just after Primrose Lane. As I was trying to get my puncture tyre repair kit in action another two cars in quick succession pulled into road with same problem.”

Gemma’s tyre was too badly damaged to repair so she had to wait for help to get home to East Street, Harwich.

Her partner, Christopher Holman, a pharmacist at Colchester General Hospital, and Ian Paterson ferried stranded people back to Harwich for help and shelter.

Mark Leitch was travelling to Little Oakley to see his parents when he hit the pothole.

He said: “The pothole was about 6ft long and five or six inches deep.

“I ended up standing by it in a high-vis jacket waving people around it.”

Rebekah Paterson, of Little Oakley, said: “I usually go wide and avoid the pothole as I did the same tyre a few weeks before on it, but due to the snow drifts covering part of the road and a lorry coming the opposite direction I had to stay over.

“The classic thud, bang and a flappy tyre later I pulled into the road just past Primrose Lane to find four others parked there too.”

A spokesman for Highways England, said: “Our operatives worked with Essex Police to deploy a lane closure so the pothole could be repaired quickly. This was done by 8.09pm.

“We used 360kg of material to fill the pothole and ensure the road was made safe for drivers.

“Uneven road warning signs are currently in place at this location and we continue to monitor it regularly.

“We were due to undertake surveys into the road surface last week, which would be used to gather the information needed to resurface this stretch of road.

“These were delayed by the severe weather and we will look to undertake them soon to inform a permanent solution to the road surface issues here.”