Ref. 72992-113A 34-YEAR-OLD man suffered serious burns after his car ploughed into a bridge and exploded on the M4.

Police say there is no obvious cause to the accident and they do not know why the car, a silver Ford Focus estate, left the road.

The incident happened around 11am yesterday about half a mile before junction 15 on the eastbound carriageway.

The car struck a pedestrian bridge after first colliding with the crash barrier and then rolled into the ditch where it caught fire and exploded.

The driver, who was said to be conscious and talking when the emergency services arrived at the scene, was badly burned.

He was first taken to the Great Western Hospital and was later transferred to Frenchay Hospital in Bristol.

Then last night he was airlifted to a specialist burns unit in Essex. A police spokesman said the burns were significant.

Witnesses who stopped to help said the driver was badly injured in the crash.

The Wiltshire Air Ambulance and fire crews from Westlea and Stratton attended the incident.

The eastbound carriageway was reduced to two lanes while collision investigators examined the scene.

All three lanes were later reopened but traffic between junctions 15 and 16 eastbound remained heavy.

The man involved in the accident is thought to be from Swindon.

No one else was injured.

Earlier in October, a family of three escaped with minor injuries after their Toyota careered off the M4 and landed upside down in a ditch.

The two adults and one child were heading westbound between junction 16 and 17 when the accident happened.

Passing motorists pulled over to help.

The passengers had managed to scramble to safety by the time fire crews arrived.

Anyone who saw yesterday's collision or has any information which could help the police is asked to contact Swindon traffic police on 01793 528111.

Emma-Kate Lidbury