WINTRY conditions left one man dead and brought chaos to the region's roads at the weekend, with a series of pile-ups on the A1 bringing traffic to a standstill.

A spate of accidents within minutes of each other on a stretch of the A1 in North Yorkshire caused tailbacks on both carriageways, with many motorists waiting for hours on Saturday morning while firefighters and police cleared the wreckage.

The first occurred on the northbound carriageway just after 7.30 am, when a van, two lorries and four cars tangled in a blizzard near the Sinderby services.

Queues of stationary traffic built up quickly, with a number of drivers caught out by the poor visibility, causing another 23-vehicle pile-up half a mile further south.

Thirteen people were hurt, with three of the more serious casualties airlifted to hospitals in Northallerton and Leeds by RAF rescue helicopters.

However, conditions were so bad that the Sea King helicopters were forced to wait until the weather improved before they could fly in to collect the injured.

Another 14 vehicles were involved in a separate pile-up on the southbound carriageway, at Gatenby, four miles further north.

Icy conditions were also responsible for the death of a motorist who lost control of his car and crashed into a lamppost after overtaking a tractor, on the A19, about a mile north of Peterlee, County Durham.

Leslie John Sharp, 35, from Ingleby Barwick, near Stockton, Teesside, was certified dead at the scene. His passenger, a 47-year-old man from the Hartlepool area, suffered minor injuries.

A docker in Hartlepool narrowly cheated death when his car slid on ice and plunged into the water with him still inside.

He managed to free himself in the near freezing conditions and swam to safety.

* Homeowners faced a further headache last night when weathermen warned that a rapid thaw and rain today could lead to flooding. The unsettled weather is expected to continue throughout the week, with gales on Wednesday and more snow on Thursday.