A pile of rotting food was dumped on a road after a council waste lorry malfunctioned.

During collections this morning, the Braintree Council lorry spilled its load onto Vernon Way in Braintree.

Pete Clark, 48, who lives on the road, was shocked to see the huge pile of rubbish outside his front door at about 10am.

He said: “The pin at the back door of the wagon just fell and it burst open.

“It’s quite a lot of rubbish, it’s probably the best part of a wagon full.

“It’s not a very nice thing to see first thing on a morning, I am just glad I have eaten my breakfast.

“Luckily the wind is blowing in the other direction.

“You can just about squeeze round it.”

Mr Clark, who runs the Central line on the London Underground, said seven council trucks turned up to clean and disinfect the road an hour later.

A Braintree Council spokesman said: “A mechanical fault on one of our food waste vehicles caused it to tip its contents on Vernon Way.

“The spillage was immediately cleaned, has been swept with a mechanical sweeper and the area has been disinfected.

“An investigation will now take place to find the cause of the fault.”