SHOPPERS at a Hampshire store had a lucky escape yesterday when an out-of-control car smashed into dozens of shopping trolleys but stopped short of careering into the building.

The drama at the Asda store in Chandler's Ford happened after an elderly driver selected the wrong gear on his car and instead of reversing ploughed forward.

Witnesses said that the driver, whose wife was in the car next to him, then appeared to lose control of the vehicle, which piled into a chain of trolleys, bringing it to a halt before it drove into the shop's foyer.

The incident happened shortly before 2.45pm after the driver and his wife had returned to their car, which had been parked in a disabled bay just yards from the foyer entrance.

A spokeswoman for Hampshire's South Central Ambulance Service said that it had sent one crew and had taken one person to hospital with minor injuries, while two other people, believed to be the driver and his wife, were treated for shock at the scene.

Store director Mike McMillan said: "Fortunately at that time of day there were not many shoppers about and luckily it's back to school week, which made it even quieter."

A spokesman for Hampshire Constabulary said that no one had been arrested over the incident, but an investigation into the accident was continuing.