A woman driver in her 80s caused chaos when she drove the wrong way along the busy A13 in Essex. The dual carriageway was shut for an hour on Monday afternoon after she drove a red Peugeot towards Southend – but on the London-bound stretch. Some cars were forced into the central barrier and one man needed treatment for neck and back injuries. Tailbacks: The dual carriageway was shut for an hour  after the pensioner drove a red Peugeot towards Southend - but on the London-bound track . Sam Butt, 33, from Leigh, was one of those who needed to take evasive action. 'I'd just changed into the left lane when ... all of a sudden in the right lane I could see this little old lady in her red car. 'She was driving without a worry in the world in the fast lane. In the rear view mirror I could see absolute carnage. 'A car swerved out of the way and went completely into the barrier and the next car did the same. About four cars must have crashed before she finally stopped. 'It was just chaos and it was shocking to see all these cars swerving out of control. It was surreal and if I hadn't changed lanes a few seconds earlier it could have been much worse for us.' Treatment: A man suffered neck and back injuries while the pensioner was taken to Basildon University Hospital as a precaution . The woman was taken to Basildon Hospital as a precaution. An Essex Police spokesman said: 'We received a number of reports of a car travelling the wrong way on the A13 near Basildon. 'A red Peugeot was reported to be driving the wrong way on the London-bound carriageway. 'A number of vehicles were involved in a collision between the Five Bells Interchange and the Pitsea flyover. Enquiries are ongoing.'
Woman drove red Peugeot towards Southend on London-bound stretch .
Several cars crashed as she drove wrong way on A13 .
Man was left with neck and back injuries after swerving out of the way .
Incident closed busy stretch for more than an hour causing big tailbacks .