ONE Hampshire motorist was lucky to be alive after his car crashed into a tree and flipped onto its side in the early hours of this morning.

Firefighters from Fareham rushed to the scene at Southwick Road, Wickham, at 12.15am, where the driver, believed to be in his 20's, was trapped inside.

Crews spent more than an hour cutting the man free from the Citroen Xsara, which had had it's roof totally caved in by the impact with the tree on the bend of the road.

The man, who was conscious, suffered injuries to his arm and his head and was taken to Queen Alexandra Hospital, Cosham.

Watch manager Simon Whelan said: "This young man was extremely lucky to be alive. Afterwards, when we had got him out and looked at the state of the car, we couldn't believe he got out with only the injuries he sustained."