A CAR has smashed through the wall of a house and in a living room, where it caught on fire in York last night leaving several people injured.

A driver has been arrested following an incident last night in which a VW Golf R, left the road and crashed into a home on Morehall Close in the Rawcliffe area of York, not far from the city's outer ringroad.

At about 1.26am the vehicle careered through the property's outer wall and came to rest in the living room of the home, where it caught fire.

The Northern Echo:

A man who had been in the living room at the time suffered severe injuries to his legs and is now believed to be in hospital. His injuries are not thought to be life-threatening. Three of the occupants of the car are also in hospital and to have suffered head injuries amongst other cuts and bruises.

A woman was also in the house at the time and managed to get out before emergency crews arrived.

A neighbour to the house, who did not wish to be named, said she had been awake at the time as she had been unable to sleep and heard the terrible crash.

"I heard a car come round and passed my house, then I heard one bang and a second big bang.

"I was still in bed and thought that didn't sound good. I opened my bedroom window and listened and I could hear a couple of voices but they weren't raised.

"I got up then started seeing blue lights. There was about 15 vehicles; fire engines and police. Then I saw a man on a stretcher and thought I should get out of the way."

Rivelin Way and Longwood Road are both closed to traffic, although there is now pedestrian access.

Police at the scene say the road is likely to remain closed for at least 24 hours while the house is made structurally safe. 

The Northern Echo:

Another nearby resident, Rachel Fennell, said: "It was only when the emergency services started going passed that I knew anything had happened. I realised when one of the fire engines and one of the ambulances had stopped at the end of the street and there were a lot of people out on the street."

Fire crews from Acomb, Huntington, York and Tadcaster tackled the blaze, putting out the fire.

A police spokesperson at the scene said: "The road is definitely going to be closed for the next 24 hours because we're concerned about the side of the house.

The Northern Echo:

The VW Golf went right through the outside wall of the house. Picture: Danny Lawson/PA Wire

"We're concerned about the property being unstable and its structure. A structural engineer has been and we're trying to locate some emergency builders who can shore up the building to make it structurally sound.

"There is still some pedestrian access down Longwood Drive and Rivelin Way and the bus company which stops here has been notified."

The driver of the vehicle, a man in his twenties, has been arrested and is currently helping police with their enquiries. Police say the car was not stolen. 

Anyone who may have seen or heard anything in the run-up to the crash, or has any other information, is asked to contact TC 1470 Gemma Wood at North Yorkshire Police on 101 or email; gemma.wood@northyorkshire.pnn.police.uk