A13 crash: Woman dies after being hit by car

The woman, in her 50s, died after being hit by a car on the eastbound carriageway of the A13

A woman has died after being hit by a car on a major route in Essex.

The female pedestrian, in her 50s, was struck on the eastbound carriageway of the A13 between the Five Bells and Pitsea junctions at about 05:50 GMT.

Essex Police criticised drivers who tried to film the incident on their mobile phones, and said it was "unhelpful" and "dangerous".

The eastbound carriageway was closed for 11 hours but reopened at about 17:00 GMT.

Inspector Rob Brettell, from the Serious Collision Investigation Unit, said: "We would like to thank the members of the public who co-operated with officers this morning.

"However, we were disappointed that some people slowed as they passed the scene and were attempting to film it.

"This is not only extremely unhelpful, but also could be dangerous during the management of an ongoing incident.

"We have taken a note of registration numbers and each driver can expect a letter from us for using a mobile phone while driving. They will get six points and a £200 fine."