A MAN in his twenties spent 11 hours in the cold and rain with his arm pinned beneath his car after an accident late on Sunday night.

It is not known why the black Peugeot 306 car left the A168 near Thirsk, North Yorkshire, at about midnight and went down an embankment before it came to rest on its side.

The driver's arm became trapped in the car's exhaust as it rolled over, which left him unable to summon help, and it was after 10am yesterday before a passing motorist raised the alarm.

Kevin Hodgson, of the Great North Air Ambulance, which went to the scene, said: "Visibility was poor because of the driving rain, and the car was not easy to see because it was at the foot of the embankment.

"Car drivers would not have been able to see down into the ditch so we are presuming it was a passing truck driver or maybe someone from a nearby farm who dialled 999.

"Obviously the victim was extremely relieved when help arrived."

It took fire crews about an hour to winch the car over with their equipment so the medical team could treat the casualty, Daryl Curtis, 24, from Doncaster.

He was airlifted to the James Cook University Hospital, in Middlesbrough, for treatment for arm and abdominal injuries, which are not thought to be serious.

Mr Hodgson said: "Having a doctor on board the helicopter certainly helped. Expert assistance can make a big difference when it comes to saving lives."

PC Andy Woodburn, who was first on the scene said: "If the accident had happened a few nights earlier when it was a lot colder, it may have been a different story."