National Highways officers sprung to the rescue last week when a lamb got stuck in the central reservation of the busy M1.

National Highways traffic officer Elliott Flynn with Gappy the lamb

It could have been a woolly story when traffic officers received reports of the stranded lamb – and despite several patrols heading off on the lookout, they couldn’t find the lamb which was said to be south of Watford Gap services.

But one National Highways traffic officer jumped into action, determined that if there was a little lost lamb in danger on the motorway he would track it down.

Elliot Flynn – who is based at the Shepshed outstation – slowed down the traffic on the southbound carriageway so he could get a better look and spotted the frightened creature in the central reservation.

The lamb – named Gappy by traffic officers – was so dirty that she was heavily camouflaged against the safety barrier and difficult to see.

“As I walked over the lamb came straight over to me and started cuddling up against my leg so I was able to pick her up and get her to safety. People in the stopped traffic were clapping and cheering when they saw what I was doing,” Flynn said.

“The lamb was tired and hungry because she had been out there for at least two days so we took her to the nearby Watford Gap outstation and gave her some warm milk.”

Not only did Flynn rescue the lamb but he also knew how to ewe-nite the lamb with her mum.

Having grown up on a farm, he knew that the mother would have a matching number on her. So he drove to the field which the runaway was thought to have escaped from and found a sheep with the same number.

Flynn and fellow traffic officer Tim Lea give Gappy some warm milk

Flynn said: “The mum was there, with another newborn, and as soon as she saw her lost lamb she was licking her to get it clean and then Gappy started feeding. We were so pleased to reunite her with her mum.”

Gappy was then checked over by the farmer but fortunately there were no signs of any injuries despite spending two days next to high-speed traffic.

National Highways operations manager Simon Mansfield said: “We get a lot of animals on our network and we have to react quickly to get them to safety as soon as possible and to protect road users. This lamb was difficult to spot hidden behind the barrier and trapped between two lanes of fast-moving traffic.

“But Elliot pulled out all of the stops to round the lamb up and make sure there was a happy ending to this tale.”