Three women hurt as car hits tree

Police said the cause of the accident was unknown

Three women were injured in a road accident in east Devon when their car hit a tree.

The three were left trapped inside the blue Alfa Romeo after the crash on the A361 at Rackenford, near Tiverton.

One woman was released by fire crews with hydraulic cutting gear and taken to hospital by air ambulance.

The two other occupants were also taken to hospital. Devon and Cornwall Police said one woman had sustained "potentially life-changing injuries".

Broken leg

Devon fire and crews from Tiverton, Witheridge, South Molton and a rescue vehicle from Exmouth attended the scene after the alarm was raised at about 0805 GMT on Sunday.

The driver was a 33-year-old woman from the Braunton area, police said. Her injuries were described as serious.

A second passenger, a woman in her 80s from Coventry, suffered a broken leg.

The third woman was also taken to hospital but later released.

Police said the cause of the accident was unknown and an investigation had begun.

But they added that black ice had been reported in the area earlier.