Road Kill!

Workmen paint around dead badger

Workmen painting white lines on a main road left a gap for a dead badger lying in the middle of it - because it 'wasn't their responsibility' to clear it up.

The animal had been killed on the A338 near Downton, on the Hampshire-Wiltshire border, but when council workmen came to paint white lines in the centre of the road they decided to leave a space until the body had been removed.

Hampshire County Council has responsibility for line painting in the area, but it's up to New Forest District Council to clear any road kill.

Businessman Kevin Maul was on his way home from work when he clocked the break in the road's lines.

'I couldn't quite believe my eyes when I saw this poor old badger who had been there over a week,' he said.

'I'd seen him every day as I went by and wondered if he was going to be picked up.

'Then on Friday I drove home to see his body between the lines - they had painted the road, but left a gap where he lay.'

The badger has since been removed and the painting is scheduled for completion today.