This was the scene on the M5 at Burnham-On-Sea on Thursday afternoon (December 7th) as police closed the motorway for more than three hours following a lorry accident.
Traffic was directed off the northbound carriageway and onto the A38, creating major delays for motorists. It followed an accident at 2.20pm near junction 23 at Weston involving a HGV carrying compressed gas canisters.
Burnham-On-Sea firefighters were among the emergency services dealing with the incident. As a precaution, the canisters were cooled with water amid concerns that they could explode.
At 5.45pm, the southbound carriageway was reopened after the canisters were made safe by a chemical expert. The M5 northbound was still closed at junction 22 at Burnham at 6.45pm.
The driver of the HGV suffered a minor head injury, but was not seriously injured.
