A VAN is on fire on the A23 forcing police to close the road.
Officers are currently at the scene of the incident at Hickstead, near Haywards Heath.
Drivers are being advised to avoid the area and diversions have been put in place to direct motorists around the site of the fire.
At 10.30am, a Sussex Roads Police spokesman said: "There's a van on fire on the A23 at Hickstead that has forced the closure of the southbound carriageway.
"Diversions are being put in place, but please try to avoid the area for the time being if you can."
Traffic reports say there is slow traffic stretching northbound along the A23 as a result of the road closure.
An AA statement read: "The road closed and there is queueing traffic due to a vehicle fire on the A23 southbound between the A272 Cowfold Road (Bolney Cross) and the A2300."
Update:
By 11.30am, the road had been reopened. One lane, of three, remains closed. Traffic is reported to be coping well.
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