THE M25 was closed in both directions after a crash involving three lorries on Wednesday afternoon– causing huge tailbacks for thousands of motorists during rush hour.

A man in his 20s was flown to The Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel after the collision on the anti-clockwise carriageway just after 2pm.

He remains in hospital in a serious condition.

The road was closed in both directions between Junction 21a and Junction 23 after the crash between two lorries and a tanker but two lanes were reopened on the anti-clockwise side as rush hour approached.

Hertfordshire Constabulary also confirmed it reopened the clockwise carriageway after 4.30pm.

One motorist tweeted “the lorry crash on the M25 is horrific” while another motorist said it took her four hours to get home.

Highways Agency spokesman Stuart Miller said the average journey time through the stretch was 90 minutes at 5.45pm and 50 minutes at 7pm.

Mr Miller said tailbacks went as far back as Junction 23, but traffic approaching the scene was as slow as 14 miles per hour after Junction 24 (Potters Bar) as the authorities tried to slow traffic down on the approach.

Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue used cutting equipment to free two people from vehicles.

The man in his 20s was then airlifted to hospital.

The Highways Agency said the police investigation finished just before 8pm, but they were still warning of delays of 40 minutes as two lanes remained closed during the clear-up operation.

All lanes were finally re-opened just before 1am.

Hollie Cowan, spokesman for the East of England Ambulance Service said: “An ambulance, air ambulance, a rapid response vehicle and an ambulance office attended and treated a man in his 20s.

“He was flown to The Royal London Hospital with suspected abdominal and shoulder injuries.”

Two HGVs and a tanker containing non-hazardous material were were involved in the collision.

The crash happened just after the exit slip road for Junction 21a and Rachel Winning commented on the Watford Observer Facebook page saying “it is the same spot for a lot of serious collisions, surely this should be addressed to prevent any more injuries”.

- On a lighter note, children stuck in the jam were given a treat as Cecil the Seagull made a special guest appearance.

Theatremaker and performer Tessa Bide, 24, put the glove puppet on to entertain children during “hour two of M25 doom”.

She said: “We had a car full of fun things, so I taught my technician how to play the ukulele.

“We were playing music and having a sing-song and people started taking pictures of us.”