M6 gin crash: HGV collision closes motorway
- Published
The crash - between junctions 19 and 20 - has caused lengthy delays on the M6
The M6 has been closed after a lorry carrying 32,000 litres of gin was involved in a crash and began leaking its cargo on to the carriageway.
The motorway was shut in Cheshire between junction 19 at Knutsford and junction 20 at Lymm following a collision between two HGVs at about 17:30 BST.
Cheshire Police said the crash had caused long delays and advised motorists to avoid the area.
There are no reports of injuries.
The crash happened at about 17:30 BST
Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service said it was "working hard to stem the leak" from one of the tankers carrying concentrated gin so it could be pumped into a replacement tanker.
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It said it was also coating the spilt alcohol with foam to prevent the flammable liquid from igniting.
It added a 300m (0.3km) cordon has been put in place "as a precautionary measure".
One of those caught up in the tailback, Rachel Sargeant, said she had been caught up in a two-hour delay.
She tweeted, external she was sitting "200yds away from 32,000 litres of spilt gin", joking it was "heartbreaking she didn't have a straw".
The "gincident" prompted a flurry of puns on social media which may have been a tonic for those caught up in lengthy delays.
Mr Ree 2 asked, external if it was in the "sloe lane" while Anthony Davies tweeted, external those in the traffic "just had to gin and bear it".
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