Cable stretched across a road at neck height between lampposts could have caused serious injury to cyclists or motorbike riders.

Nearly 200ft of the wire was tautly zig-zagged across Dane Valley Road that links Margate and St Peter’s.

It was discovered by fire and rescue service teams from the Thanet (Broadstairs) station who were in the area dealing with an abandoned scooter on fire next to The Cabin cafe shortly after 1am on Tuesday.

One of the fire fighters who was at the scene said: “The cable had been very carefully placed at the right height to knock someone off a motorcycle, scooter or bike. This was obviously more than just a prank and could have had extremely serious consequences. It is fortunate we found it before anyone was hurt.”

Police are investigating the incident and are looking at CCTV footage from the area. A spokesman said: “It is worrying to think that whoever did this probably knew exactly what they were doing.”

The cable is thought to have taken from a yard at one of the industrial units in Dane Valley Road.

The fire is being treated as “suspicious” say police.