THE delay in building new floodlights at the Cooper Associates County Ground in Taunton is due to a road crash, Somerset CCC chief executive Andrew Cornish has explained.

The first floodlight was put up successfully between the Colin Atkinson Pavilion and the Andrew Caddick Pavilion earlier this month, but no new lights have been installed in the fortnight since.

It was understood the lights were set to be installed before the end of the month, with testing taking place in February.

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Addressing a question at last night's SCCC AGM regarding why only one floodlight is currently in place, Cornish said: "The lights come from Portugal and were involved in a road traffic accident in France.

"We sent the lorry back to Portugal to see if the lights were damaged, which they were."

Cornish went on to explain that the cost of the crane hire (£2,000 a day) means they are waiting until everything is in place before they resume construction, though all the lights are expected to be in place by the end of February.

As anyone who saw the first light go up in a matter of hours can testify, once the process is underway it can be completed quickly.

READ MORE: Work underway on floodlights at home of Somerset County Cricket Club