AT least four people have died following a major crash on the M5 in South Gloucestershire.

A woman and two children remain in hospital with life-threatening injuries after a lorry collided with oncoming traffic between junctions 16 and 14 on the M5 in south Gloucestershire on Saturday.

A spokesman for Avon and Somerset Police said: "The closure is likely to be in place for a considerable amount of time and we’d ask people to avoid the area."

Avon and Somerset Police confirmed four people had died in the crash, which happened when the lorry smashed through the central reservation.

The lorry driver was taken to hospital to be checked over as a precaution.

All three lanes of the motorway's southbound carriage are now open, but the northbound carriage remained closed for most of Sunday.