Chaos on French motorway after Belgian police chase 'UK-registered' car

One person was killed and several injured in three accidents on the A16 motorway between France and Belgium on Wednesday. One of the cars involved had been pursued by Belgian police and is reported to have had British licence plates. In a separate accident nearby a motorcyclist who ran into a lorry was killed.

Belgian police check migrants' papers Laxmi Lota

The first accident took place at 5.40am near Dunkirk, on the French side of the border.

At 6.00am another car, reported by local radio to be British, crashed into it after having been chased by Belgian police.

Four of its occupants were injured, one of them seriously.

They were all foreign, according to France Bleu Nord, which said they were suspected of being people smugglers.

French emergency services told the AFP news agency that two of them had been hit by bullets fired by Belgian police in an apparent attempt to stop the vehicle before it reached France.

One of the occupants of the other car suffered a broken femur, while the others were in a state of shock.

Motorcyclist killed

A third, unrelated accident took place about 10km away, killing a motorcyclist who collided with a lorry.

The A16 was closed for several hours, reopening at 8.30am in France-Belgium direction and 10.30amin the lane leading from Ostend to Paris.

Belgian police have so far refused to comment.