Overturned lorry forced M6 motorway closure

National Highways said the M6 in Staffordshire shut about 22:30 BST on Friday

An overturned lorry forced the closure of the M6 motorway when it spilt diesel across the road in Staffordshire.

The crash, shortly after 22:00 BST on Friday, affected the northbound carriageway between junction 14 for the A34 Stafford North and junction 15 for the A500 to Stoke-on-Trent.

Staffordshire Police said the HGV hit nearside and central barriers before turning over and spilling the fuel.

Officers confirmed there were no injuries and National Highways (NH) said shortly after midday lanes three and four had re-opened with a reduced speed limit, but that the motorway would shut again later.

Heavy delays of 90 minutes were reported in the area shortly after the carriageway was partially reopened.

NH confirmed the lorry has now been recovered, but said lanes one and two will remain out of use until a full closure implemented again overnight, to enable resurfacing work.

Lane four on the southbound side will also remain shut because of the impact of the diesel spill.

Highways England shared an image of emergency vehicles surrounding the lorry

Dale Hipkiss, from NH, said the top layer of the road surface had been planed away because of extensive damage caused by the spilled fuel.

"We can then carry out a full repair overnight when traffic is lighter, causing less disruption to road users," he added.