THOUSANDS of drivers faced motorway chaos after a lorry blaze on the M62.

They were held up in huge queues after police were forced to close the motorway because of the blaze at Scammonden.

The driver of a lorry carrying pallets loaded with paint powder leaped clear of his cab as it caught fire yesterday morning.

He had been flagged down by a passing driver who saw smoke pouring from the vehicle as it travelled on the eastbound carriageway near Scammonden Bridge.

The motorway’s eastbound lanes were closed for more than two hours between Junction 22 at Windy Hill and Junction 24 at Ainley Top.

Highways Agency officers and police diverted drivers along the A672 Oldham Road and A629 Lindley Moor Road but there were queues on each.

Many drivers were also stranded on the motorway as fire crews battled to tackle the blaze.

It was the latest in a series of major hold-ups on the busy motorway in the past few weeks.