THREE men appear to have escaped serious injury after the vehicle they were in crashed into a tree.

A Subaru car was travelling along Middridge Road in Shildon, County Durham, just after 8am this morning when it left the road and hit a tree.

Three male occupants were all able to get free from the car with the assistant of fire and rescue personnel.

They were taken to Darlington Memorial Hospital as a precaution.

A police spokesman said nobody is thought to have been seriously injured and no other vehicle appears to have been involved in the collision.

The route was closed for around two hours while emergency services dealt with the incident.