Driver in motorway crash that killed five people killed including two children was 'on wrong side of the road'
16 October 2024, 19:32
A driver in a motorway crash in which five people, including two children, died, was on the wrong side of the road.
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Cumbria Police said officers were called to reports of a Skoda driving south on the northbound carriageway of the M6 near Tebay Services at 4.04pm on Tuesday.
The collision also involved a Toyota, Cumbria police said.
The driver of the Skoda, a 40-year-old man from Cambridgeshire, died at the scene.
The driver of the Toyota, a 42-year-old man, as well as a 33-year-old woman and two boys aged 15 and seven, all from Glasgow, were pronounced dead at the scene.
A third child in the Toyota was taken to the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle with serious injuries. The families of those involved are being supported by specially trained officers.
The motorway was closed for nearly 12 hours overnight but reopened in the early hours of this morning.
Pictures shared by drivers on the road show huge traffic jams leading up to the crash site where grey smoke can be seen billowing into the air.
Yesterday a statement on Cumbria Constabulary website read: "The M6 Northbound is closed from J36 to J39. Officers were called to the incident at 4:04pm today.
"The road may be closed for some time, drivers are asked to seek alternative routes."
Cumbria Police said in a statement: "The families of those involved are being supported by specially trained officers." The road reopened early on Wednesday.
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Following the crash, a post on National Highways North-west X account following the incident read: "M6 northbound is closed between J36 and J39 - btwn Milton, Milnthorpe and Wickersgill and Oddendale - due to a v serious collision.
"Info from scene indicates this closure will remain in place for a number of hours and Air Ambulance teams are in attendance."
The M6 Northbound fully reopened in the early hours of Wednesday following the incident.
Police are appealing for witnesses to the fatal collision.
Anyone with information relating to the incident can report online, quoting incident number 146 of October 15, 2024, or phone on 101.
