Trapped on the A3 - a true story

Petersfield Newswire enjoys a laugh, but on occasions like this, when snow brings the town to a standstill we like to feature a true reader story.

This comes from Gareth, 43, who spent the night stuck in his car on the A3 just outside Petersfield.

I'd been at a seminar in Kidderminster and was driving home in the worst weather conditions I can remember.

I got to the Ham Barn roundabout and things were just at a standstill. I had some sweets in the car and I was able to call my wife and kids to tell them I was OK but I already knew I was in for a long stay.

I got a blanket out of the boot of the car and readied myself for an uncomfortable night. Fortunately for me, my next-door neighbour was a stuck a few cars behind me so he came down and joined me, so I at least had some company.

We did get some sleep, though it was uncomfortable, and it was about 5am this morning when we heard a few engines starting up. The windscreen wipers managed to clear sufficient room to allow us to see into the distance, and there were a couple of guys with shovels and backpacks making their way down the embankmanent to the queue of traffic.

As they got closer we could see they were wearing hi-visibility jackets and were obviously some form of rescue team. When they finally got to us, they dug around the car and cleared the windscreen and windows.

I wound down my window and the first guy poked his head into the car and said: "Wash your car today sir?"