Drivers were caught up in long delays on the M6 and surrounding areas after firefighters were called to tackle a lorry blaze on the M6.
Firefighters were called to the blaze at around 12.10pm yesterday, Wednesday, August 21, between Junction 39 at Penrith and Junction 40 at Shap.
Crews from Penrith, Shap, Appleby and Lazonby tackled the HGV fire on the hard shoulder.
The fire involved a significant amount of plywood that was being carried in pallets by the vehicle.
The fire was well alight on arrival and the crews extinguished the fire and made the area safe.
The driver was out of the vehicle when the crews arrived and was unhurt.
Crews were in attendance for around three hours.
The blaze caused huge gridlock in Penrith and surrounding area for hours.
Two lanes southbound were closed on the M6 after the fire, which caused traffic to queue back to Junction 41 and as drivers tried to find alternative routes, tailbacks snarled up Penrith and on the A66.
Traffic was still at at a standstill until around 7pm, with one driver reporting it took over two hours to travel between the Roundthorn Hotel and Clifton – normally a 10-minute trip.
