Five-lorry crash causes two-hour delays on M6

Traffic was allowed to move past in one lane after the crash

Drivers are facing delays of nearly two hours after four lorries and a tanker crashed on the northbound carriageway of the M6.

Three lanes of the motorway were closed after the crash between junctions 18 and junctions 19 in Knutsford, Cheshire, just after 04:00 BST.

Cheshire Police said one person was believed to have sustained serious injuries.

He has been taken to the Royal Stoke Hospital but his injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.

National Highways said there were 12 miles of queues and a "large spillage" on the motorway.

Police said one man was believed to have sustained serious injuries

Supt Gareth Wrigley of Cheshire Police said: "I appreciate the disruption that this incident is likely to cause and I want to reassure motorists that we are working hard to resolve the situation as quickly as possible.

"However, due to the scale of the collision, we are expecting the closure is expected to remain in place for several hours.

"Local diversion are in place, but we are urging motorists to avoid the area and delay their journeys if possible."

There were tailbacks of up to 12 miles after the crash

National Highways said three lanes could still be closed by early Wednesday morning

In a later update, National Highways said three lanes of the motorway would remain closed until the evening or even early Wednesday morning while the road was resurfaced.

A spokesman said all the lorries had been removed, but there was still oil and diesel on the road, so it was not possible "to safely run any traffic over these lanes".

He added the lanes had to be resurfaced, meaning it was not possible to have drivers near "our huge resurfacing vehicles".