KENT Police have appealed for information after three people were killed in a crash on the M20 near its junction with the M26 at Wrotham (Stephen Hedges and Emily Hall write).

The tragedy happened just before 10.30pm on Monday night on the London-bound carriageway. A Vauxhall Cavalier saloon car, a Kawasak motorcycle and Vauxhall Astra van were initially involved in the accident.

Two men in the Cavalier, who police believe were in their late teens or early 20s and from Maidstone, were pronounced dead at the scene.

The motorcyclist, a man in his 30s from London who is believed to have worked in the Mid-Kent area, was also pronounced dead at the scene. All three are still to be formally identified.

Police say a marked Kent Police traffic car, which was on its way to the A20 in response to an emergency call, also became involved in the incident. It had its blue lights on at the time.

The two police officers in the car, both men, were taken to Maidstone Hospital

where they were detained for observation. They have now been released.

A police spokeswoman said: “We believe at this stage that the Cavalier and motorcycle were the first to collide and that the Astra and police car subsequently crashed into the scene.”

She added: “The police car caught fire, which was quickly extinguished by a police officer and a member of the public.”

Police closed the M20 in both directions and were still at the scene with fire crews early this morning clearing the debris. The M26 was also completely closed for a time.

The accident caused long delays throughout mid-Kent for rush hour motorists this morning at traffic queues tailed back past the Maidstone exit on the M20.

The police spokeswoman said because the accident involved a police vehicle the incident would be referred to the Police Complaints Authority. They are in the process of notifying the next of kin of the dead.

At a press conference, the deputy chief constable of Kent, Jim Barker-McCardle, said that police were convinced that a number of motorists had passed the crash but had driven on.

“We already have some witnesses who stopped at the scene of the crash, but we know for a fact a number of members of the public drove around the scene and kept on going,” he said.

“We desperately need anybody who thinks they even might have seen the crash or any events leading up to it to contact us urgently.”

Anyone who witnessed the crash or events leading up to it is asked to contact Kent Police on 01622 690690.”