Two people were killed and at least one other was seriously injured when a huge traffic jam caused a road smash today.

The accident occurred when fast-moving traffic on the A1 near Wetherby struck vehicles tailing back from an earlier accident further north.

At least one of the victims is believed to be the occupant of a car crushed under a lorry at the Wetherby exit of the trunk road's north-bound carriageway.

The driver of a van loaded with T-shirts, who was taken to hospital in Harrogate, is believed to have been knocked unconscious while his vehicle drove a further 200 metres before crashing to a standstill.

Speaking from the scene of the accident, Inspector Brian Pearson, of West Yorkshire Police, said: "It is a very serious accident, obviously as there have been fatalities. We do not know the exact reason behind it but I believe it is a case of fast-moving traffic meeting slow-moving traffic with very serious consequences."

In the earlier accident, on the A1 near Boroughbridge during rush-hour today, a 31-year-old lorry driver from Belgium received cuts to his head when his lorry, which was carrying cooking oil, was in collision with another lorry.

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