Two people are in hospital with serious injuries after a car crashed into a club during a police chase in Northumberland. Northumbria Police said officers began a pursuit of a car in Ashington shortly after 2.30am today following attempts to stop the vehicle due to concerns about the manner it was being driven.
Crash details
The black Volkswagen Golf left the road and collided with a road sign and wall on North Seaton Road, police said. Photos from the scene show the car sustained significant damage after colliding with the corner of The Mortimer club.
A police cordon has remained in place today while forensic collision investigators worked at the scene. The two occupants of the car – a man and woman aged in their 20s – remain in hospital with serious injuries, police confirmed.
Arrest and referral
A spokesperson for the force added: "The man has been arrested on suspicion of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and is in police custody. As is standard practice with incidents of this nature, a referral has been made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct."
Enquiries are ongoing and anyone with information can send a direct message on social media or use the live chat or report forms on the force's website. This includes anyone with CCTV or dashcam of the collision or the events leading up to it, including footage of the Golf. People with dashcam footage can submit it via the portal on the force's website. Those unable to contact the force in those ways can call 101, quoting NP-20261013-0086.
Emergency response
A spokesperson for the Independent Office for Police Conduct said: "We are assessing a referral from Northumbria Police to determine whether an investigation is required."
Emergency services, including the Great North Air Ambulance, were dispatched to the scene following the collision. Ambulance crews transported one person to Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital (NSEC) in Cramlington, while the other person was taken to Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI).
A North East Ambulance Service spokesperson said: "We were called to a road traffic incident on North Seaton Road in Ashington at 2.43am on Tuesday 13th October. We dispatched two ambulance crews, a specialist paramedic, one clinical team leader and supported by Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS). One patient was taken to Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital (NSEC) and another patient was taken to the Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI), both by road."
A spokesperson for Great North Air Ambulance Service said: "Our critical care team was activated at 3.04am to reports of a road traffic collision in Ashington. We had a paramedic and doctor on a rapid response vehicle and they arrived on scene at 3.23am. Our team worked alongside the North East Ambulance Service (NEAS) to assess and treat a patient. The patient was taken to hospital by a NEAS road crew, accompanied by our team."
