A young driver suffered serious injuries when his car crashed with a van in Charing last night.

He had to be freed from the wreckage of his vehicle after the accident in Charing Hill at around 7.30pm.

Emergency services were called and a crew from Ashford fire station helped free him.

A spokesman for South East Coast Ambulance Service said they were called to reports of a head-on collision.

An ambulance, a critical care paramedic and the hazardous area response team (HART) were sent.

She said: “We took a man in his 20s to the William Harvey Hospital with serious leg and other injuries by ambulance with the critical care paramedic going with him.”

A spokesman for Ashford fire station said: “When we got there the police and paramedics were already there assessing his condition.

“We stabilised the car and, working with the paramedics, got the driver out through the door on a long board. We did not have to cut the roof off the car.”

The van driver was unhurt. There were no passengers in either vehicle.

The road was closed while emergency services dealt with the crash and was re-opened at 10.40pm.