Four dead after crash blaze

Four people have died and three others have been injured after a horror smash involving three cars.

A Ford Fiesta and a Vauxhall Astra were left in flames after a collision with a Chrysler Neon on the A595 in Moota, near Cockermouth, Cumbria.

The driver of the Fiesta and two rear seat passengers died, along with the Astra driver, following the crash on Saturday evening, Cumbria police confirmed.

A woman who was in the front seat passenger in the Fiesta has been taken to West Cumberland Hospital, in Whitehaven, after suffering "serious injuries", while male driver of the Neon and a man in the front passenger seat suffered minor injuries.

The A595 between Bothel and Papcastle was closed for more than four hours while fire crews tried to rescue the victims, but the road reopened in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Station Officer Dave McDonald of Cumbria Fire & Rescue Service said: "We were called about 8pm.

"When we got there, they were a number of vehicles involved, two of which were on fire.

"We used hose reels to put the fire out. The second crew used cutting gear to release the casualties."

Cumbria Police said two of the cars had been heading northbound on the single carriageway road while the third was being driven southbound.

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