DRIVERS around Huddersfield and Calderdale faced traffic chaos after another smash on the M62 .

Hundreds of motorists were caught up in hold-ups after the drama involving a chemical tanker on the busy motorway yesterday.

Fire chiefs and police shut both sides of the motorway near Chain Bar , Cleckheaton, for several hours after the lunchtime crash involving a tanker and two lorries.

The driver of one of the lorries was trapped in his cab and had to be freed by firefighters.

The tanker was empty except for residue of a highly-flammable resin, but this leaked out.

Fire officers ordered the immediate closure of the motorway and set up a 50m exclusion zone.

That allowed an air ambulance to land, but it was not needed.

When the chemical was deemed safe firefighters using a specialist winch released the driver from beneath his crushed steering column.

The man, aged 47, suffered injuries to his lower left leg and facial injuries and was taken to Leeds General Infirmary by road ambulance.

A fire service spokesman said the rescue took time because the resin was known to react with water and could prove dangerous.

“While the primary concern was to get the driver out the scene had to be made safe for rescue workers,” he said.

The eastbound lanes were closed until around 5.30pm.

Two lanes of the westbound carriageway were also closed between Junction 27 at Gildersome and Junction 26 at Chain Bar until after 4pm.

Drivers who were trapped on the closed section of the motorway were allowed to reverse and turn around in convoys organised by Highways Agency staff and police. They could then exit the motorway via the slip roads.

The pile-up came less than a month after another horrific accident on the M62.

One woman died and 20 others were injured when a minibus carrying a hen party from South Elmsall crashed with a lorry on the M62 near Junction 32.

Several of the casualties spent days in hospital after the crash on April 26.

A Highways Agency spokesman confirmed the latest accident happened at around 12.40pm and resulted in a total closure in both directions.

The motorway problems caused traffic jams on many other roads including the A62 Leeds Road, the A644 Wakefield Road at Cooper Bridge, the A650 at Birkenshaw and the A58 at Bailiff Bridge.

Routes through Dewsbury and Mirfield were bumper-to-bumper and buses were running up to an hour late.