A38 Aston Expressway shuts after serious crash

The air ambulance landed on the busy A38M , and West Midlands Police said there were "two serious casualties" while a third man was also involved in the crash.

Three lanes of the A38M were re-opened out of city at around 3.30pm, while the rest of the stretch has now reopened.

Police were called at 2.43pm, and one of the three men in the two vehicles became trapped, leading to a two-hour operation to free him.

West Midlands Ambulance Service spokeswoman Suzie Fothergill said: "The driver of the first van, a man, was treated for potential abdominal injuries. The man was fully immobilised and conveyed to City Hospital, via land ambulance, for further assessment and treatment.

"The second van had been carrying two occupants at the time of the incident and had sustained significant damage. The driver, a man, was assessed and discharged by ambulance crews at the scene.

"The passenger of the van, also a man, was found to be trapped in the vehicle. Ambulance crews treated the man whilst working alongside other emergency service personnel for approximately two hours to extricate the casualty from the vehicle. The man was given pain relief and treated for head and leg injuries at the scene. He was fully immobilised and conveyed, via land ambulance, to Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham for further assessment and treatment.

"The trauma doctor travelled on board the ambulance continuing to provide emergency medical treatment whilst en route to hospital. The hospital had been pre-alerted and medics were on standby awaiting their arrival."

Emergency services warned of significant traffic disruption and vehicles were backed up to Junction 10 for Walsall.

The exit sliproads from the M6 at Junction 6 were partially closed giving no access into the city. Traffic was diverted to Salford Circus.

Twitter user @LCBenit posted this picture, apparently showing the aftermath of the crash: