TWO serious accidents on the region's roads left one man dead and closed major routes for several hours over the weekend.

The man died when the car he was travelling in crashed into a stone bridge parapet in North Yorkshire on Friday night.

The accident happened on the A170 Scarborough to Thirsk road at Catter Bridge, near the junction to the village of Spaunton.

Another man in the car was taken to Scarborough General Hospital, where his condition was described as serious yesterday.

The road was closed for five hours following the accident.

On Saturday morning, a 16-year-old girl was airlifted to hospital with serious head injuries following an accident on the notorious A688 at Barford Corner, near Barnard Castle, County Durham.

The girl, from the Peterlee area of east Durham, received a puncture wound to her temple and was extremely agitated when emergency services arrived.

She was treated at the scene by a doctor travelling with the Great North Air Ambulance, based at Teesside Airport.

Because of her condition, the girl was sedated before being airlifted to the James Cook University Hospital, in Middlesbrough. Her injuries were described as serious but not life-threatening.

Four other people involved in the accident were taken by ambulance to Darlington Memorial Hospital for treatment to head and neck injuries.

Traffic on the road had been busy ahead of a bank holiday weekend of activities in the area, including the annual Barnard Castle Meet and the Barnard Castle Steam Fair.

Police closed the road for about two hours until the fire service removed the vehicles.

The corner has been an accident blackspot for years. In September 2001, a 19-year-old man died when his car went out of control and struck a tree on the same bend.

A teenager was badly hurt when he crashed into a tree on Christmas Day 1999 and just over a year earlier, five people had to be cut out of their car after failing to negotiate the corner and striking a tree.