The M62 has been fully re-opened five hours after a lorry carrying a large load of steel coils got into difficulties today.

The incident happened shortly before 11am and caused the closure of two lanes of the westbound carriageway between junctions 25 at Brighouse and junction 24 at Ainley Top.

Queues of motorists snaked back past junction 26 at Chain Bar as Highways Agency staff tried to remove the heavy goods vehicle from the hard shoulder within a roadworks section of the carriageway.

The lorry was removed by 4pm and all lanes were re-opened.

A crane lifted the cables back onto the lorry.

Traffic on the eastbound carriageway past the scene was also affected as motorists slowed to look as a crane manoeuvred the coils back into position on the lorry.

The vehicle was carrying three large steel coils - each weighing several tons - and some of them had moved in transit to the off-side of the vehicle trailer, posing a risk to other motorway users.

Both the hard shoulder, in use as a running lane during work to install a concrete safety barrier along this section of the motorway, and lane one of the westbound carriageway were closed while work to re-position the coils and get the lorry on the move again continued.

Only one lane of the carriageway was available past the scene.