TWO teenagers are in hospital with serious injuries after a car ploughed into a family home.

A 16-year-old girl from Leigh and a 19-year-old man from Dagenham are in the Royal London Hospital with serious head and spinal injuries respectively after a Honda Accord slammed into two stationary cars and a garden wall in Elmsleigh Drive, Leigh, just before 1.30am today.

A 34-year-man from Leigh was arrested at the scene on suspicion of drink-driving, although it is unclear what vehicle he was driving.

Firefighters had to cut the roof off the Honda Accord to release the girl.

The road was closed for six hours as police began investigating the crash.

The Honda appeared to have hit a Chevrolet Lacetti parked in the road, ploughed through a garden wall and hit a Ford Transit van parked between the wall and the house, coming to rest over the wall.

The Ford Transit was forced forwards through the neighbour’s garden wall.

The Chevrolet was forced backwards into a Citroen Berlingo van.

The back window of a Ford Focus, parked nextdoor, was also broken, possibly by flying debris.

Wayne Davey(CORR), watch officer at Leigh Fire Station, said: “I’d say the Citroen and the Lacetti were a write-off and the Focus had damage from where the wall hit it.

“There was substantial damage to the Honda. The side rear quarter was completely stoved in and we obviously had to cut the roof off.”

A police spokesman said: “Police were called to Elmsleigh Drive, Leigh just before 1.30am to a collision involving four vehicles.

“A 34-year-old man from Leigh was arrested at the scene on suspicion of drink-driving.

“He is in custody in Southend at the moment.

“A 16-year-old girl from the Leigh area has serious head injuries and a 19-year-old from the Dagenham area has serious spinal injuries.

“They were taken to Southend Hospital and later transferred to the Royal London Hospital.

“The circumstances surrounding the collision are still being investigated.”

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101.

  • For interviews with the homeowners, who tried to free the crash victims, see Monday's Echo