A main road in Essex is set to be closed for several hours after a gas main was damaged during a crash.

The two-vehicle collision took place on the A137 Harwich Road in Lawford, close to the Bargate Lane junction, around 2.15pm.

The Gas Board and Essex County Fire and Rescue Service has been called to the scene as there are reports of a gas leak.

Harwich Road is likely to remain shut during the evening rush hour.

Essex Police has advised drivers to take alternative routes using Coggeshall Road, Long Road East, Jupes Hill, Mill Hill and Dedham Road.

The East of England Ambulance Service sent two ambulances and a rapid response vehicle to the scene.

A trust spokeswoman said: “A woman was reported to have sustained a leg injury, a man had cuts to the hands and another woman was taken to taken to Colchester General Hospital as a precaution.”

Two fire crews, one from Colchester and one from Manningtree, are in attendance.