A BRIDGE into a village has partially collapsed after a lorry crashed into it.

Eggleston Bridge near Eggleston village was damaged when the vehicle hit the structure, damaging a large section of the wall, last week.

Following the incident, the driver of the vehicle involved alerted the police straight away.

The bridge has since been closed due to health and safety concerns and a diversion put in place stretching 8.2 miles.

Durham County Council said they intend to carry out repairs on the bridge, which are expected to take until mid June, and seek to recover the costs.

Brian Buckley, strategic highways manager at Durham County Council, said: “We were made aware that a vehicle crossing Eggleston Bridge on Wednesday afternoon hit the structure, causing a large section of the wall to collapse.

"For safety reasons, we had no choice but to close the bridge.

"Our inspectors have assessed the damage and repairs are being carried out as a matter of urgency. Due to the narrow nature of the bridge, repairs cannot be undertaken without a full closure.

"Scaffolding has been erected and it is envisaged the work will take up to three weeks to complete.

“A diversion route is in place with signs up in the area to advise road users and we’d like to thank all those affected for their patience.”

Businesses in the area will be affected and many hope the bridge will open quickly.

Clare Moss-Clennell of Eggleston Hall Cafe and Gift Shop fears people travelling from outside the area may not know her business is open.

She said: "There's quite a long diversion to get here and I know locals know we are open but people travelling in may not."

Fellow business Doe Park believes the bridge closure will not affect them but thinks it will be an inconvenience to people hoping to visit Eggleston Hall Gardens.

Business owner Alison Lamb said: “It hasn’t really affected us because I put up a post on our Facebook telling people it was closed as soon as it happened.

“I think people coming to us don’t use it very much anyway because it’s narrow and cars won’t want to drive on it with caravans on the back.

“I think it’s more of an inconvenience than a problem especially for people trying to visit the hall and gardens.”