DRIVERS are facing delays after a rain-soaked embankment collapsed onto a Devon road.

The B3193 near Trusham, in the Teign Valley, remained partially blocked last night following the dramatic landslip.

A temporary traffic light system was in operation as the road was only passable on one side.

Work to clear tonnes of earth and trees from the road was set to resume today.

Elsewhere on a weekend of cold temperatures gritters were out in force on the county’s main roads.

And the Highways Agency warned drivers to take extra care.

The agency blamed a number of incidents on the A30 and A38 on motorists going too fast for the conditions.

Echo reader Mike Boddy, who lives near Christow, said he had been forced to make a 20-mile detour to get home when the B3193 was initially completely closed following the landslip on Thursday. He said the slip was about 30 metres wide and estimated it  had slid around 100 metres  downhill on the Teign Valley  Road close to the GM Coachworks site.

Workers from Devon County Council’s contractor South West Highways were attempting to clear the road over the weekend.

Mr Boddy said: “It’s a very busy B-road, so it will have affected hundreds of people and businesses. The rain has brought a huge expanse of earth down.”

A spokesman at the county’s highways control room said they hoped to reopen the road today. Meanwhile, safety warnings have been issued by the police as the Exeter area braces itself for sleet.

Temperatures are expected to hover around five degrees Centigrade today.

But weather experts from the Met Office in Exeter have warned sleet is likely in the city tomorrow.

A spokesman  for the Met Office said: “Sleet is coming tomorrow and more rain is expected this week. In the Exeter area temperatures have held to about three or four degrees overnight and is likely to get a little warmer, despite tomorrow’s snow.

“Overnight on Saturday was particularly frosty and on Friday night the temperature slumped to minus one or two.

“The minimum temperatures from now on will be about three to five degrees and we are getting some showers. The cold is due to a north-easterly wind and today should bring temperatures of about five degrees.”

A police spokesman warned drivers to be careful on the  roads, particularly when venturing off the main network of A and B-roads.

It followed an accident on ice when a 4x4 vehicle ended up on its side in a lane at Smallridge, near Axminster, shortly before 4am yesterday.

Nobody was trapped in the vehicle but the driver is believed to have suffered a neck injury. A crew from Axminster fire station assisted police in clearing the road.

The accident prompted police to warn drivers to take extra care, especially on their way to work, following overnight frosts.

“We urge everyone to pay attention to conditions,” he said. “People must drive according to the conditions and to pay attention and keep speeds down.”