FIVE people including a two-year-old boy were taken to hospital after a car went off the road and hit a tree.

The collision happened in the early hours of Saturday morning on Station Road, in West Cornforth.

It involved a blue Citroen Saxo which left the road and collided with a tree, causing extensive damage to the car and injuring a number of the occupants.

The driver of the vehicle, a 24-year-old man, failed a roadside breath test and drug wipe.

He was taken to University Hospital of North Durham (UHND) where he is being treated for his injuries.

A 19-year-old woman who suffered lower back injuries was taken to UHND before being transferred to James Cook University Hospital, in Middlesbrough.

Two other passengers, a 23-year-old man and a 21-year-old woman, went to the same hospital with minor injuries and have since been released.

A two-year-old boy was also taken to UHND, but was not believed to be injured.

The car was travelling from West Cornforth towards Metal Bridge when the collision took place shortly after 12.05am.

It happened approximately 100m east of the disused railway line.

The road was closed for two hours to allow collision investigators to work at the scene and for recovery of the vehicle.

Anyone with any information is asked to call Durham police on 101, quoting incident number 6 of July 7.