EMERGENCY services were called to two separate car crashes that took place within an hour of each other on Sunday.

The first accident occurred when a 21-year-old Middlewich man driving a Mitsubishi Galant along the A530 King Street was in collision with a Rover turning right out of Yatehouse Lane.

The driver of the Rover, a 36-year-old man from Stockport, lost consciousness and suffered breaks in his right arm and leg and was taken to Leighton Hospital, where he was kept in overnight.

The 21-year-old suffered whiplash and was also taken to hospital but his condition was not thought to be serious.

The second incident took place at a notorious accident blackspot along the A533 Bostock Road, near the junction of Brick Kiln Lane at around 4.10pm.

An 18-year-old Middlewich man was driving a Renault Clio towards Davenham when his car left the road after turning a sharp left hand bend, hit a tree and burst into flames.

The man, who has not been named, suffered a broken leg and was taken to Leighton hospital.

As reported in the Guardian, King Street is now closed for repairs until December 5 and traffic heading north to south is being diverted along the A553 Bostock Road.

Steve Burrage, sub officer at Northwich fire station, urged people to be careful while driving along the diversion routes, especially as winter draws near.

He said: "Because King Street is closed, two of the worst accident spots - Bostock Road and Penny's Lane - will be extremely busy.

"I advise all drivers to drive carefully along these routes and make sure they leave plenty of time for their journey."

gsproston@guardiangrp.co.uk