These were the scenes emergency services faced:
5. M6 lorry fire
Diversions were put in place as lanes were gradually reopened throughout the day, with just one of the four lanes remaining closed overnight for barrier repairs and resurfacing work. Photo: National Highways
6. M6 lorry fire
The motorway fully reopened fully at 4.20am on July 30, more than 22 hours after the fire broke out. Photo: National Highways
7. M6 lorry fire
Phil Cueto, National Highways Availability Manager, said: "We would like to thank everyone caught up in any of the congestion for their patience while we worked to fully reopen the southbound carriageway. "This was an especially complicated incident requiring specialist recovery, an extensive carriageway clean-up ... and barrier and bridge repairs. "We do welcome feedback from drivers and we work closely with partners like the police and fire and rescue services to routinely review our response to incidents to ensure we have worked as quickly as is safely possible to re-open carriageways and to identify areas for improvement." Photo: National Highways
8. M6 lorry fire
It is vital oil spills are treated before lanes are reopened to prevent other vehicles from skidding.
Treating spills requires specialist absorbent granules and sometimes sand to be placed over the spillage to soak up the liquid.
It is then left to absorb the spillage before a road sweeper drives along the affected section of road to clear up the material.
Traffic officers then re-examine the surface to assess its skid resistance. Photo: National Highways