A woman who stopped to help a seriously injured motorcyclist after a head-on crash says he is lucky to be alive.

Dean Shorter, 21, and his pillion passenger Lauren Greenfield both suffered serious injuries in the crash with a car in Appledore Road, Tenterden.

Dean’s father Paul Shorter has since thanked well-wishers for their messages of support, saying: "We have had an untold number. We would like to thank everyone."

Dean, who works at Argos in New Rents, Ashford, was flown to hospital in London by the Kent Air Ambulance and Lauren, who was thrown over the car in the impact, followed by road ambulance.

Three other people in the car, including two teenagers, were also injured in the crash, which happened at 3.40pm on Monday.

Susan Mathews, who stopped to help the casualties, said: "The motorcyclist was in a lot of pain and was slipping in and out of consciousness.

“He knew he had broken his leg – he is lucky to be alive.”

Mrs Mathews, of Kingsnorth, Ashford, had just collected daughter Kira, 15, from Homewood School and was taking her to a sewing class in Stone.

She said: “We were driving along the Appledore Road a couple of cars behind the one in the accident. I did not see the impact, which was on a sharp left-hand bend.

“The motorcyclist had been at Tenterden Garden Centre and was travelling towards the town when he hit the car head-on. His passenger flew over the car onto the verge – it was chaos.”

Mrs Mathews and Kira stopped to help.

“Another driver stopped to help as well,” she said. “The girl was crying and in pain, but the motorcyclist was more badly injured.

“We talked to him and he kept slipping in and out of consciousness. He was in shock.

“We were trying to keep him conscious. A paramedic response car came with one person so we stayed with him until the ambulances arrived.

“We were there for about 40 minutes.

“The bend where the accident happened is very sharp. It is a dangerous bend.”

Three people in the car, the woman driver and children aged 17 and 14, were treated at the scene by paramedics and two of them were taken to the William Harvey Hospital, Ashford, by ambulance.

The road was closed until 9.15pm.

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