London travel news LIVE: Chaos on M25 as lorry fire causes three hour delays and 11 mile tailback
Motorists are facing delays of up to three hours after a lorry fire on the M25 sparked huge traffic jams stretching for 11 miles.
At around 1.30am on Friday a lorry carrying a load of metal sheeting caught fire on the M25 clockwise. 5 units and a specialised water carrier from Kent Fire and Rescue Service responded with the blaze being extinguished at around 3am.
Although the fire had been extinguished the lorry's cargo remained extremely hot and lane restrictions remained in place.
Two lanes on the clockwise carriageway between junction five, near Sevenoaks in Kent, and junction six, near Godstone in Surrey , were closed.
Traffic monitoring site Inrix said two lanes were still closed as of 11:38, despite one being briefly reopened, but "severe delays" remained.
See below for the latest updates.
Traffic monitoring site Inrix has that congestion had spread to the A25 through Sundridge, Oxted and Godstone following the huge queues on the M25.
Delays of about 55 minutes are also affecting traffic travelling westbound on the M26 leading up to the M25 at junction five.
There are severe delays of up to 3 hours on the M25 clockwise in Kent between J5 (Seven Oaks/M26) and J6 (South Mimms) following a lorry fire in the early hours of the morning.
Naaational Highways said: "At around 01:30 this morning a lorry carrying a load of metal sheeting caught fire on the M25 clockwise. 5 units and a specialised water carrier from Kent Fire and Rescue Service responded with the blaze being extinguished at around 03:00.
"Although the fire had been extinguished the lorry's cargo remained extremely hot and lane restrictions remained in place to allow traffic to continue to move past the scene safely with as minimum impact to the travelling public as possible.
"By 09:00 the contests of the lorry had been safely removed and the recovery operation could begin.
"Recovery continues at scene with lane restrictions remaining in place. Lane 1 (of 4) remains closed for ongoing long term roadworks with lanes 2 and 3 closed to provide a safe working environment for recovery agents.
"Once recovery is complete a pavement engineer will assess the carriageway will attend for any potential damage to the carriageway from the fire."
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