A DRIVER and her two passengers had a lucky escape last night after a plastic bag set fire to the exhaust pipe of their car.

The two women and a man were in a Mazda saloon on the coastbound side of the M2 in Gillingham when the incident happened.

The exhaust pipe is thought to have sucked up the stray plastic bag as they were going along. It was only because the driver decided to pull in at Medway service station at Rainham for petrol that a truck driver saw flames billowing from under the car.

The incident happened as the people, thought to be from London, travelled on the motorway at about 10.30pm. Leading firefighter Gary Nash said: "The truck driver saw flames and made her switch the engine off and used his dry powder extinguisher."

As the people in the car escaped the vehicle, forecourt staff at the BP station rushed over to put out the flames.

Once the car was safe from fire, the woman was able to call the RAC and they repaired the vehicle.