The motorway was shut for more than six hours after two cars, a van and lorry were involved in a collision between junctions 32 and 33 at around 1.15am on Friday. The M55 slip road was also closed eastbound at the Broughton interchange.

The woman driver of a red Ford Escort, thought to be from the south coast, was pronounced dead at the scene north of Bilsborrow. A female passenger in the same vehicle was rushed to Royal Preston Hospital where she is suffering from "severe brain injuries".

A man driving a red Vauxhall Astra suffered "severe arm injuries", while the male driver of a white Mercedes-Benz Sprinter suffered minor injuries. A man driving a HGV from Scotland escaped unharmed.

Fire rescue teams from Fulwood, Preston and Garstang freed three people and two dogs from the cars.

Dominic Fellows, the crew manager at Preston Fire Station, said: "It was chaotic. One vehicle had hit the central reservation, the van was across the hard shoulder and first lane and the Astra was straddled across the middle lane."

The accident led to chaos on the county's main routes on Friday morning as vehicles were diverted onto nearby roads such as the A59 and A6. The motorways were reopened at around 8.15am.