An off-duty fireman rushed to the rescue of a driver after his lorry overturned.

Sheppey-based Steve Uggles was on his way to Sittingbourne when he saw the articulated truck crash on the Bobbing roundabout at about 6pm on Thursday.

Police were called to the accident and roads in the area were closed for almost seven hours as the lorry was blocking part of the carriageway.

It had also spilt its load, more than 20 tons of bailed waste paper, which had to be cleared.

Paramedics were on scene but the driver was not injured or taken to hospital.

Mr Uggles said he was driving next to the lorry, which was going round the roundabout to head onto the A249 Maidstone-bound.

He noticed the wheels start to lift off the road and slowed his car down before the lorry fell, just past Staplehurst Road.

He said: "As the lorry carried on, its wheels came off the ground and the whole thing just crashed on its side.

"There was nobody in front of it but anybody walking on the path would have been killed."

Mr Uggles parked his car and ran over to the lorry along with two other bystanders.

After making contact with the driver and establishing he was OK, together they were able to free him from the cab.

He was still in his seat so they had to unclip his seat belt and pull him up through the open door.

"He was really shaken up and the windscreen was all smashed up - he was a lucky guy," added Mr Uggles.

All the roads were reopened by about 1am.

The accident came just three days after a delivery lorry toppled over at Cowstead Corner roundabout and spilt almost 500 pints of milk onto the carriageway.

The driver was trapped in the cab for an hour and Mr Uggles was also one of the firefighters on the scene at that accident.