Mother is killed in road accident

A woman died and her three-year-old daughter was taken to hospital following a road crash at East Horndon in Essex.

The woman, who was 38 and from north Wales, died at the scene when her car struck the back of a lorry parked in a lay-by on the A127 at 0430 BST.

Her daughter received serious injuries and was taken to Basildon Hospital and then Great Ormond Street Hospital.

The pair had been visiting relatives in Wickford and were returning to Wales.

The west-bound carriageway of the A127 near Basildon was closed for several hours after the accident, causing long delays for traffic already on the road.

The lorry driver, who was asleep in his cab, was uninjured.