Van destroyed in fire on M5 as blaze closes motorway and leaves it needing resurfacing
Traffic has been stopped on the M5 after a van burst into flames in the middle of the motorway.
Dramatic pictures showed the vehicle completely alight in the centre lane of the southbound carriageway between Junction 5 for Droithwich Spa and Junction 6 for Worcester.
Flames could be seen engulfing the vehicle while thick black smoke billowed into the sky.
National Highways said shortly before 3pm that the fire service was en-route and that officers would be "implementing a full closure of the road very shortly".
Another photo showed the fire taking hold of the cab and engine of the white van, before it spread to the rest of the vehicle
Shortly afterwards the agency confirmed the southbound carriageway had been closed while firefighters doused the flames.
The closure of the carriageway was reported to have caused five miles of congestion on approach, with queues stretching back to Junction 4A with the M42.
Very little remained of the van after the fire had been extinguished, with just a burnt out shell left sitting in the middle of the motorway.
National Highways reported that all four lanes would need to be resurfaced "due to the damage sustained from the fire".
"We will try and get lane four open shortly for traffic caught within the closure," a statement said.
Shortly after 4pm one lane was reopened to release drivers caught within the M5 closure after Highways Officers and firefighters cleared the debris.
The closure of the motorway led to 90-minute delays and more than six miles of congestion along the motorway, as well as queues on neighbouring roads.
