Driver, 78, dies in crash on day of chaos on roads

The male driver died in a crash which closed one of the main routes between Blackpool and Preston for close to six hours,

He was in control of one of two cars which collided on the A583 at Kirkham, close to the roundabout at the junction with Ribby Road.

A Kia Picanto and a Honda Civic were involved in the accident which happened at around 9.40am yesterday.

Police, fire and ambulance crews were called to the scene.

A 78-year-old man was declared dead at the scene.

A second person was taken by ambulance to Royal Preston Hospital.

The North West Air Ambulance was initially scrambled to the scene but was stood down en-route.

Police have issued an appeal for information about the accident – one of five road incidents reported to police on the Fylde coast yesterday.

In St Annes, a female motorist escaped unharmed despite her car being flipped onto its side.

Emergency crews were called to the junction of Clifton Drive South and St Thomas’ Road in St Annes, after a black Peugeot 206 and a Volvo collided.

The Peugeot rolled onto its side.

Two crews from the town’s fire station attended at 1.05pm.

A spokesman said firefighters stabilised the car and cut the windscreen open, allowing the female driver to escape physically unharmed.

Described as ‘shaken’, she was taken to Blackpool Victoria Hospital for a check-up.

Investigation into the cause of the crash in St Annes is under way.

At around the same time, motorists travelling across Crossley’s Bridge — said to be Blackpool’s busiest bridge — were affected after a white Renault van and a black Vauxhall Astra collided.

The incident happened at around 12.15pm. and two lanes of the bridge, in Plymouth Road, were blocked.

One person suffered neck injuries in the collision.

Earlier on Monday four vehicles were involved in a rush hour collision on another busy route linking the Fylde coast to the rest of the county.

A white Ford Transit van, a Mercedes C220, a BMW 318, and a Mercedes A150 were involved in the crash which happened in Lytham Road, Warton

Nobody was seriously hurt but Lancashire Police said the crash ‘significantly’ impacted on traffic, with BAE Systems workers making their rush hour commute caught up the aftermath.

The morning had begun with an accident in Layton, in which a grey Renault hit metal railings after the driver swerved to avoid another car.

The man, understood to be in his late 30s or early 40s, was unharmed but his car was badly damaged and is thought to be a write-off.

Police were called at 8.22am but did not attend the scene, at the roundabout where Westcliffe Drive becomes Layton Road.

One nearby worker said the car and its driver were still there at 10am awaiting a recovery truck.