M1 in West Yorkshire closed in flash flooding

Torrential rain in West Yorkshire caused the closure of the M1 motorway and led to several homes being flooded.

The M1 was closed between junctions 48 and 45 southbound and between junctions 43 and 46 northbound after flooding left debris on the carriageways.

Police said the closure followed at least three collisions. The road was reopened at 03:00 BST.

In east Leeds, firefighters pumped water from flooded homes after drains backed up in Swillington and Garforth.

Some residents spent the night away from their homes. On one street in Swillington, Neville Grove, the fire service said about 10 homes were affected.

A traffic officer dealing with the M1 closure said the conditions were "horrendous".

He said he had not seen road conditions like it in 20 years.

Sgt Duncan Street said rain water had run into gullies and brought a large amount of rocks, debris and stones on to the carriageway.

He added: "We had at least three confirmed collisions in the space of a few minutes because of the volume of rain that was falling and the conditions at the time were very, very dangerous for the public."