12 year old girl killed in motorway crash

An investigation is underway following the death of a 12-year-old girl in a multi-vehicle crash near Preston.

Officers were called to the M61 northbound between J9 and the M6 at Bamber Bridge, Lancashire, shortly after 8pm on Saturday night,

A Nissan Micra collided with the central reservation, before rebounding into the road where it was hit by a Fiat motorhome. A foreign registered Audi A4 collided with the rear of the Fiat and a Ford Fiesta then crashed into the central barrier.

The 12-year-old girl was a passenger in the Micra, the driver, a 27-year-old woman from Lancaster was only slightly injured.

The two men in the Audi are wanted for questioning after they ran off from the scene. They are both thought to be in their 30s and of eastern-European origin. One was wearing a navy bomber-jacket, while the second man was wearing a black beanie hat and all black clothing, carrying a black holdall.

The road was reopened in the early hours of Sunday morning.