DRIVERS faced a nightmare on Tuesday afternoon and during rush-hour yesterday (Wednesday) morning. Trouble started at 1pm on Tuesday when a six-vehicle accident blocked the A1(M) on the northbound carriageway between junctions 8 and 9. Five cars and a lor

DRIVERS faced a nightmare on Tuesday afternoon and during rush-hour yesterday (Wednesday) morning.

Trouble started at 1pm on Tuesday when a six-vehicle accident blocked the A1(M) on the northbound carriageway between junctions 8 and 9.

Five cars and a lorry were in collision. One woman suffered serious facial injuries and was taken to Luton and Dunstable Hospital after fire crews from Stevenage and Baldock spent two hours cutting her from the wreckage of a car. The driver of the vehicle was taken to Lister Hospital.

During the operation to treat the injured and clear the debris, staff from nearby Sainsbury's took bottles of water to the scene to stop rescue crews and motorists trapped in the jam dehydrating in the intense heat.

An air ambulance helicopter was also called and remained on the scene but was not needed. The southbound lane was closed for almost two hours but the northbound lane was shut for seven hours which resulted in severe traffic congestion in the area.

A few miles away the Baldock by-pass was closed for almost three hours after a portable toilet tumbled from a trailer, smashing and spreading its contents across the road.

Police say the vehicle sent to recover the loo was caught up in the traffic snarl-up on the A1(M).

Motorists faced further congestion on Wednesday morning when two cars and a lorry were in collision between junctions 8 and 7 southbound underneath the Fishers Green overbridge.

Nobody was injured in the accident but traffic was reduced to a single lane while the debris was cleared.