Emergency services were forced to close the A596 for several hours after a serious crash yesterday.

At about 8.40am yesterday, a call was made after a Vauxhall Corsa and a Volvo HGV were involved in a two-vehicle collision.

The main route was promptly closed while firefighters from Carlisle West and Wigton spent an hour extracting a local woman in her fifties from the car.

The crash took place at the accident hotspot at Micklethwaite, and the road was closed for several hours while an investigation took place.

Further delays were experienced by road users while the vehicle was recovered.

Crews from Cumbria police, Cumbria Fire and Rescue and the North West Ambulance Service were at the scene along with the Great North Air Ambulance.

The woman was airlifted to hospital the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle with “serious head injuries”, a spokesperson for the North West Ambulance Service confirmed.

The driver of the Volvo, a man in his sixties, was uninjured.

People were asked to avoid the scene and motorists were advised to seek alternative routes.

A spokesman for the Great North Air Ambulance Service said: “We attended an incident on the A596 and transferred the patient to the RVI in Newcastle. It took the crew about 30 minutes to get there.”

Road closures were in place at Kirkbride and Thursby roundabout.

A bystander who had not witnessed the crash said: “ It’s an awful section of the road. I just wish something more could be done about it.”

Officers are now appealing for information on the serious collision, and are encouraging anybody who witnessed the incident, or who has dashcam footage from the time of the collision, to get in touch.

Anyone with any information that could help is urged to contact the police on 101, email SCIU@cumbria.police.uk quoting log 39 of February 23.

Alternatively, they can call the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.