FIREFIGHTERS battled for 45 minutes to release two young men from the wreckage of a car after it smashed into a bridge over a stream on the A334 at Botley last night.

The front of the saloon car - carrying four young men - demolished the bridge, leaving the vehicle hanging precariously over the water.

Fire crews had to tie the badly-damaged vehicle to trees to prevent it from toppling over the edge.

The 17-year-old driver from the Shedfield area and his 18-year-old front seat passenger, who lives at Swanmore, were trapped in the the front of the car. Firefighters had to cut away the roof to free them.

Botley Sub-Officer Bob Biggs said: "They were lucky. The car took a lump of the bridge out and pushed it 20 yards up the stream. The nearside front of the car was pushed back to within a foot of the seat.

"Access was difficult round the front where the car was hanging over the river. You could only work from the side and the back."

Police said the driver suffered serious injuries and the front seat passenger suffered a serious head injury. After being released from the wreckage of the car they were taken to hospital by ambulance.

A third young man in the car - an 18-year-old from Waltham Chase - sustained a slight injury to his left knee.

The accident happened near Sparshatts garage on the A334 at Broad Oak, just after 11pm as the car was travelling from Hedge End towards Botley.

Fire crews from Botley and Hightown, Southampton, were called to the scene along with Southampton St Mary's fire station's special equipment unit.