ESSEX’S top police officer has exclusively talked about the role he played in saving the life of a young mum after a horrific crash.

Chief Constable Stephen Kavanagh was the first man on the scene when a Corvette collided with an Astra and burst into flames, in Essex Regiment Way, Chelmsford.

Mr Kavanagh also spoke of his sadness at being unable to save Terrence Harrington, 67, from Chelmsford, the driver of the Corvette, who died at the scene.

The smash, on Sunday, April 13, also left a couple aged 30, and two girls, three and 18 months, in hospital.

They have since been released and the family are now recovering at their home in Great Dunmow.

Mr Kavanagh said, in his 29 years in the force, it was the most tragic incident he had ever witnessed.

Mr Kavanagh said: “I was on a Sunday afternoon drive and offduty, but saw the flames on the road up ahead and put on the blue lights to get to the scene.

“The man was trapped, and the woman in the other car was also trapped, but I just couldn't get to the guy in the Corvette.

“We were concerned the woman’s Astra was going to go up in flames, so two members of the public helped me to open the back door of the Astra to protect us from the heat of the Corvette.

“We dragged the woman out of the Astra, she was semi-conscious, and we managed to save her, and members of the public had already got to the husband and the two children.

“By the time we got the woman out and managed to get her back to a safe distance, the Corvette was just a mass of flames.”

Anyone with information on the crash can call police on 101.