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The motorway has been closed in both directions between junctions 12 and 15 near Stanlow and Frodsham.
Cheshire Police has tweeted there are no casualties, but drivers are being warned to avoid the area.
The force said it would remove the central reservation so motorists could turn around and get off the motorway.
Residents in Helsby, Hapsford and Elton are advised to stay indoors and close their windows and doors. om Jackson, who is stuck on the motorway, said: "I was about 20 cars back and we just saw the traffic start to slow and then come to a complete standstill.
"A huge plume of black smoke and then two small explosions, that may have been tyres, then there was a huge one which was like a giant bunsen burner going off way up into the sky."
Five fire engines are at the scene, a spokeswoman for Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service said, but firefighters are also present behind the cordon due to the risk of explosion from the gas-filled tanker.
They are currently working with the police helicopter unit to check the tanker's temperature and with specialist staff from the tanker company, police said.
Trains have been stopped on the lines between Manchester and Chester, and Ellesmere Port and Helsby. The Liverpool to Runcorn train line is also closed.
Stretches of the M56 have become gridlocked, with traffic backing up as far as Liverpool, with a knock-on effect in north Wales. The A5117 has also been closed.
Photos posted on Twitter show motorists leaving their vehicles to sunbathe or play football on the opposite side of the carriageway, which is empty of traffic.
A tanker carrying propane gas has caught fire, shutting the M56 motorway near Chester, with trains and air travel also affected.
Firefighters are tackling the lorry fire, which started just before 15:00 BST on the westbound carriageway. The motorway has been closed in both directions between junctions 12 and 15 near Stanlow and Frodsham.
Cheshire Police has tweeted there are no casualties, but drivers are being warned to avoid the area.
The force said it would remove the central reservation so motorists could turn around and get off the motorway.
Residents in Helsby, Hapsford and Elton are advised to stay indoors and close their windows and doors. om Jackson, who is stuck on the motorway, said: "I was about 20 cars back and we just saw the traffic start to slow and then come to a complete standstill.
"A huge plume of black smoke and then two small explosions, that may have been tyres, then there was a huge one which was like a giant bunsen burner going off way up into the sky."
Five fire engines are at the scene, a spokeswoman for Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service said, but firefighters are also present behind the cordon due to the risk of explosion from the gas-filled tanker.
They are currently working with the police helicopter unit to check the tanker's temperature and with specialist staff from the tanker company, police said.
Trains have been stopped on the lines between Manchester and Chester, and Ellesmere Port and Helsby. The Liverpool to Runcorn train line is also closed.
Stretches of the M56 have become gridlocked, with traffic backing up as far as Liverpool, with a knock-on effect in north Wales. The A5117 has also been closed.
Photos posted on Twitter show motorists leaving their vehicles to sunbathe or play football on the opposite side of the carriageway, which is empty of traffic.