A car burst into flames as the trapped driver talked to a 999 operator after a crash yesterday.

The 29-year-old's Volkswagen Passat hit a low-loader pickup truck after coming off the A66 on the westbound carriageway at Sadberge, near Darlington, shortly after midnight.

Police, firefighters and paramedics attended the accident and he was taken to the University Hospital of North Tees, in Stockton.

John Pringle, Fire Station Officer at Darlington, said: "The gentleman in the car felt that he was trapped by his legs. He phoned through to 999 and as he was on the phone the car started on fire.

"Fortunately, he managed to free himself and crawled away from the car."

Crews from County Durham and Darlington and Cleveland fire brigades put out the blaze and found the man, still conscious, in nearby long grass.

"Luckily he stayed on the phone to control, otherwise we could have struggled to find him," said Mr Pringle.

"He was given medical attention by ourselves and the ambulance service and taken to North Tees."

Inspector Alan Davidson, of Darlington police, said surface water on the road was believed to have caused the crash.

A spokeswoman for Tees, East and North Yorkshire Ambulance Service said the man suffered a suspected broken pelvis and thighbone and first-degree burns on his leg.