A Reform-led council has been slammed after it put up temporary traffic lights around a dead deer as it was too hot for workers to remove the carcass.
North Northamptonshire Council closed off a 50m stretch of the A6116 near Corby because council workers had been sent home amid Britain’s ongoing heatwave.
The country sweltered in exceptionally hot and humid weather for a second consecutive day on Thursday, with rare red weather warnings continuing into Friday.
Now, the Conservatives on North Northamptonshire Council have slammed Reform, accusing the council’s response as “absolutely ridiculous”.
Oundle councillor and leader of the local Conservative group Helen Harrison told The Telegraph: “The council has a duty to remove dead and wild animals from the highway.
“If the temperatures were not so extreme that they prevented the putting up of traffic lights and cones, then they were clearly not so extreme that it would prevent the picking up of a small animal off the highway.”
A spokesman from Wellingborough & Rushden Conservatives added: “Residents expect common sense, competence and value for money from their council. Instead, a routine operational issue has become a national news story.
“The Reform-led administration at North Northamptonshire Council had promised a ‘Doge’ approach to local government, one that would be cutting waste and delivering efficient public services on taxpayers money. Residents will rightly ask whether this is what that looks like.”
The dead deer was at the side of the road
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The road, which links Corby to the village of Thrapston, is used by around 7,000 vehicles a day.
Officers put out 15 traffic cones, two temporary traffic lights, two blue arrow signs and an orange plastic barrier around the carcass.
A council spokesman has now insisted the traffic lights were in place for less than 24 hours.
They added the A6116 was not completely closed to traffic at any point.
North Northamptonshire Council hit back at the claims
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A council spokesman said : “We received a report of a dead deer in the road [on Wednesday, June 24], which couldn’t be moved to a safe place.
“Temporary traffic signals were set up to prevent road users on this busy, high-speed road coming into contact with the obstruction.
“Due to the high temperatures, the team who would normally deal with this sort of incident were stood down from lunchtime yesterday.
“This resulted in the temporary traffic signals needing to stay in place overnight until the team was able to attend.
“We worked as quickly as possible, given the circumstances, whilst ensuring the safety of residents and council staff.
“The deer was removed at approximately 7am on Thursday and traffic signals removed shortly afterwards.”
Britons have been warned about the ongoing heatwave
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While temperatures are set to ease over the weekend, Britons have been warned about the ongoing impact of the record-breaking temperatures.
Several hospitals have declared critical incidents amid the heatwave, with University Hospital Southampton being forced to cancel a number of planned operations and some outpatient appointments.
Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth and Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust both declared critical incidents on Wednesday.
The London Ambulance Service (LAS) responded to its highest number of life-threatening emergencies ever on Wednesday, and its chief operating officer Craig Harman said they expect “demand to grow day on day over the next couple of days”.
The Met Office extended its red warning until 9pm
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The Met Office extended its red warning until 9pm on Friday for London and parts of east and South East England, stretching across Oxfordshire and Bedfordshire, Hampshire and Kent – the first time it has issued red heat warnings over three consecutive days.
An amber heat warning is in place for a wider area on Friday, running to midnight, and taking in the East Midlands, East of England, north-west England, south-west England, West Midlands and Yorkshire and Humber.
Swathes of Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland face yellow warnings for thunderstorms on Friday.
Annie Shuttleworth, a Met Office meteorologist, said eastern England is expected to see the highest temperatures on Friday but things will “finally cool down this weekend”.