Two Green Goddesses helped out after a 20-ton Army vehicle crashed on the M25 in Hertfordshire.

But within minutes of assessing the situation, the fire service was called in to rescue a man trapped in the cab of the lorry.

Hertfordshire Fire Service sent three fire engines and a specialist rescue vehicle to free the man.

The Green Goddesses do not carry cutting equipment.

Switched lanes

The man, whose vehicle careered into the central reservation after hitting a car and colliding with a motorway maintenance van, was airlifted to Watford General Hospital.

The Green Goddesses were travelling on the M25 at its junction with the M1 when the accident happened nearby.

A Hertfordshire Police spokeswoman said: "Three vehicles were involved in the collision which took place on the M25 westbound at junction 21a where roadworks are being carried out."

She said that the Army lorry had switched lanes, and was in collision with a car.

Ageing vehicles

The woman car driver was unhurt. A second man, believed to be in a maintenance van, was taken to hospital.

Hundreds of the ageing Green Goddesses have been moved across the country in advance of next week's planned firefighters' strike.

The Fire Brigades Union says the Green Goddesses will not be able to provide adequate fire cover in the event of a strike.

Their top speed is 50mph and the union claims they could topple over if they are driven around bends at more than 20mph