TRAFFIC remains on a stretch of the M3 following a ‘serious collision’ which caused a major vehicle fire today.

The incident is believed to have happened at around 11am on the eastbound carriageway between Junctions 2 and 3.

A van was said to have broken down, after which is was hit by a lorry as the driver failed to see the van. This then resulted in a vehicle fire, with five fire crews attending.

A tweet from Surrey Fire Rescue Service read: “Five fire crews are responding to a road traffic incident, and a vehicle on fire on the M3 Junction 3 to 2 - Please observe the Lane 1 closure to allow our vehicles to access this incident quickly. Highways England and Surrey Police also attending.”

Surrey Police have since confirmed that ‘amazingly’ no one was injured, Tweeting: “The M3 is in the process of being re-opened to all traffic.

“Amazingly nobody was seriously injured after the van broken down and was hit by a HGV as the driver failed to see the van.”

The eastbound carriageway was completely closed between Junctions 2 and 3, and while two lanes have been reopened, lanes 1 and 2 remain shut.

Drivers were advised to avoid the area and traffic was held for almost an hour before eventually being released, although delays in the area remain.

Highways England say that delays of 30 minutes are to be expected, with traffic set to return to normal levels by around 6pm.