A TEN-year-old East Lancashire boy has died in a motorway crash in Hampshire.

And a woman motorist has been arrested by police on suspicion of causing the death of Joshua Whitaker by dangerous driving.

Joshua, of Waterside Terrace, Bacup, died after his mother's green Skoda Felicia was struck by a silver blue Honda Jazz as it queued in stationary traffic on the M3.

The driver and two other children in the Skoda were also injured in the collision and were taken to the North Hampshire Hospital, Basingstoke.

The accident happened between Junctions 5 and 4 of the northbound carriageway after cars were halted by a vehicle fire further up the motorway.

Police have appealed for witnesses to the accident, at around 5pm last Friday, after only one person came forward to say they had seen what happened.

The woman arrested, a 26-year-old from Surrey, has been released on bail pending further inquiries.

Neighbours in Bacup said Joshua's parents, John and Sheila, were still in the south of England. PS Rich Parsons, who is leading the inquiry, said: "I cannot believe that only one person saw this happen.

"The motorway was extremely busy with traffic at the time of the crash, yet no-one has come forward who directly witnessed it.

"Cars appear to have travelled past without stopping or realising the severity of what happened. It may be that those motorists who were using the motorway at the time have travelled out of Hampshire.

"These people may hold important information, no matter how insignificant they may feel it is. It's therefore vital that anyone who saw what happened should come forward."

Anyone with information should contact the RDIT at Lyndhurst Police Station on 0845 045 45 45 or on 02380 674 263.