The A3 has been brought to a standstill today after a car crashed into another vehicle while driving in the wrong direction following a police chase.
Police officers were reportedly in pursuit of a silver Mazda shortly after 2pm on Friday in response to an emergency call when it began travelling in the wrong direction down the busy A road.
According to Get Surrey, the car joined the A3 near Painshill southbound and begun travelling northbound on the hard shoulder before colliding with a black Lexus.
A Surrey Police spokesperson said a member of the public had been left with major injuries, and an air ambulance was seen landing at Esher Common after multiple emergency vehicles were called to the scene.
Meanwhile, major roads into Devon and Cornwall have been brought to a standstill as optimistic sunseekers flock to the Britain’s seaside for weekend getaways – despite yellow weather warnings covering vast swathes of the south coast.
Pictured: The silver Mazda involved in a police chase while driving down the wrong way down the A3. The crash caused the busy A road to come to a standstill today
Multiple emergency vehicles attended the scene of the crash, and a Surrey Police spokesperson said a member of the public had been left with major injuries
Pictured: People get out of their cars as they wait for the road ahead to be cleared after an accident on the A3 caused the busy road to come to a standstill
Torrential rain, multiple car crashes and broken-down vehicles have caused gridlocked traffic – as visitors have been urged to stay away from the popular regions all together.
The A30 was closed in both directions near Launceston after the body of a man was discovered on the eastbound carriageway, police said.
The exact circumstances of the man’s death have not been revealed but police have urged travellers to ‘avoid the area’ as Highways England advised drivers to delay their journeys until later today.
Major roads into Devon and Cornwall have been brought to a standstill as eager sunseekers flock to the Britain’s coast for weekend getaways. Pictured: Delays on the M5
Traffic is slow moving at various points along the southbound carriageway of the M5 (pictured) between the Almondsbury Interchange and Weston-super-mare
Traffic jams have been seen in various parts of the country today. Pictured: Traffic on the M3 near Cobham today
Gridlocked traffic was also seen on the A3 near Oxshot. The northbound carriageway was congested (pictured)
One lane on the westbound carriageway has since been reopened – the rest remain shut.
Diverted traffic has caused various tailbacks – including a three-mile queue on the at the Tamar Bridge – on the A38, Cornwall Live reported.
The A30 has also seen a broken-down vehicle on the Westbound carriageway.
A lorry – which diverted from the A30 – drove into a wall in Launceston causing traffic to pile up on the A388 too.
Traffic is slow moving at various points along the southbound carriageway of the M5 between the Almondsbury Interchange and Weston-super-mare.
The A30 was closed in both directions near Launceston after the body of a man was discovered on the eastbound carriageway, police said
The exact circumstances of the man’s death have not been revealed but police have urged travellers to ‘avoid the area’ as Highways England advised drivers to delay their journeys until later today
‘Holiday traffic heading south for Devon and Cornwall’ as well as ‘poor weather conditions’ have been cited as causes by traffic app Intrix.
In Exminster, a lorry and a car crashed causing the A379 to be shut in both directions.
A lorry crashed into a wall in Launceston causing the A388 causing traffic to pile up.
But those eager for a sun-soaked weekend by the coast will be in for a surprise as thunderstorms and heavy rain are set to sweep across most of England and Wales until Monday.
The Met Office has issued yellow thunderstorm warnings until early next week, with the potential for more damage to buildings from lightning and hail.
Storm warnings cover all parts of England south of York and all of Wales, and the Met Office said lightning and flooding pose a risk of delays or cancellations to train and bus services, and of road closures and power cuts.
From today through to Monday there will be a constant deluge of rainfall working its way from the south of England up to Wales and as far north as Hull as Britons are lashed with up to 70mm of rain.
It comes after another day of hot weather, where temperatures reached 90F (32C) in southern England, storms struck in various parts of the UK last night, with areas around Maidenhead, Berkshire, particularly hard hit.
Yesterday a staggering four inches of ‘biblical rain and hail’ was dumped on Wales and an A&E department in Gloucester had to be evacuated amid torrential downpours.
The A38 was closed in both directions in Winscombe north of the A371 junction overnight after a burst water main caused a sink hole, in which a coach became stuck
Football goals are seen in a flooded play area after heavy rain, in Hertford, Hertfordshire, this morning following the deluge last night
A shopping cart is seen in a flooded car park after heavy rain, in Hertford, Hertfordshire, as a car stops before entering the pool
People out and about in the heavy rain and mist this morning in Dunsden, Oxfordshire after a night of storms
People sheltering under umbrellas from the rain on Wimbledon Common yesterday after many days of high temperatures. The forecast is for cooler weather with thunderstorm warnings and flash floods
A misty, hazy start to the day this morning after a night of storms over the farmland in the Oxfordshire countryside
Met Office chief meteorologist Frank Saunders said: ‘Up until Monday, thunderstorm warnings cover much of England and Wales, with parts of southern England and South Wales seeing the greatest likelihood of impacts.
‘The storms will not affect all areas, but where they happen there will be frequent lightning, gusty winds and intense, heavy downpours with 30 to 40 millimetres of rain possible in less than an hour and, in a few unlucky spots, a small chance of 60 mm falling in a short period.
‘With the continuing hot weather, large swathes of the UK continue to be at risk from thunderstorms, and potentially the impacts from heavy rain, into the early part of next week.’
Neil Davies, Flood Duty Manager at the Environment Agency, said: ‘Isolated thunderstorms could bring sudden surface water and river flooding, which may lead to flooded properties and severe travel disruption in some areas. Further surface water and river flooding is also a possibility until Sunday.’
The Environment Agency has a warning for expected flooding at Winford Brook at Chew Magna, south of Bristol, along with six alerts for possible flooding around Birmingham.
Avon and Somerset Police were warning of delays on the A38, which was closed in both directions in Winscombe north of the A371 junction overnight after a burst water main caused a sink hole, in which a coach became stuck.
Treacherous conditions on the A14 near Cambridge yesterday as torrential rain and dark skies made driving hazardous
The Met Office has issued yellow thunderstorm warnings until early next week, with the potential for more flooding and damage to buildings from lightning and hail after a staggering four inches of ‘biblical rain and hail’ was dumped on Wales and an A&E department in Gloucester had to be evacuated amid torrential downpours yesterday
The M25 was brought to a standstill by floodwater yesterday, with only one slightly treacherous in use anti-clockwise and a BMW driver forced to abandon their car in the clockwise lane
In Newcastle-under-Lyme, children were seen playing in muddy water and enjoying the outdoor play equipment which was surrounded by flood water