DESPAIRING police last night appealed to drivers to slow down after the worst start to an Easter weekend on Britain's roads for decades left four dead and scores injured.

More than 30 vehicles were involved in an horrendous pile-up in dense fog on the A1(M) in North Yorkshire yesterday morning.

The massive shunt left 27 people injured and closed the northbound carriageway for ten hours as emergency services cleared the road.

The accident came only 24 hours after four people died in accidents on the M40 and the M5 as the holiday getaway began on Thursday.

Police were last night bracing themselves for further trouble today as the Easter Bank Holiday rush continues over the weekend.

Motoring organisations said record numbers of cars were heading for popular tourist destinations including Scarborough, the Yorkshire Dales and the Lake District.

Last night, an investigation began into what caused the latest smash on Britain's busiest road, near Boroughbridge, in early morning mist yesterday.

Witnesses described a car and caravan clipping the central reservation, sparking a chain of events which led to 27 people needing hospital treatment.

The caravan overturned, forcing other drivers to take evasive action, with a number of vehicles careering into each other.

Another 100 yards further back, four lorries were involved in a second accident as they tried to avoid the debris, with a number of cars and a van also caught in the collision.

Two more lorries also collided on the hard shoulder, while a number of minor accidents occurred further down the northbound carriageway as traffic suddenly slowed and drivers travelling too fast and too close together were unable to react in time.

Calls to the emergency services started to come in at 6.20am with the police, ambulance and fire services on the scene within minutes.

Fifty firefighters from Harrogate, Knaresborough, Acomb, Ripon and Boroughbridge helped free those trapped in the wreckage, including a family of five from a single car.

A total of 24 people were ferried to hospital by a fleet of 13 ambulances. Although some were described as seriously injured, none are thought to be in a critical condition.

Harrogate District Hospital went on to an emergency footing after being informed of the accident while other casualties were taken to the Friarage Hospital, in Northallerton.

An additional three people are understood to have needed treatment for minor injuries later in the day.

Tailbacks began to build up almost immediately, with queues on the northbound carriageway stretching back 16 miles, as far south as the A64 interchange south of Wetherby, West Yorkshire.

Police said local people turning up to watch the clean-up operation added to the congestion, while drivers on the southbound carriageway put their own lives in danger by slowing to look at the wreckage.

A police spokesman said: "We would like to appeal to motorists using the roads this Bank Holiday weekend to slow down and take their time. Better to arrive a few minutes late than not at all.

"How many accidents do there have to be before the message is understood?"

The RAC said: "Our advice to drivers of cars loaded for a holiday is that they remember their vehicles is going to be heavier and will therefore take longer to slow down.

"We urge motorists to give themselves room to think and to react should anything unexpected happen. As we have seen this weekend, fog is particularly dangerous."