A MAN is in a critical condition after a horror crash between his car and an empty petrol tanker.

Firefighters had to cut the driver, thought to be in his 30s, free from the wreckage of his Mercedes Benz C-Class after the collision on the A449 at Ombersley, near Worcester.

The man, who suffered a very serious head injury, was trapped for 20 minutes before firefighters freed him using heavy cutting equipment.

He was anaesthetised at the scene and taken by ambulance to the major trauma centre at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham, where he remains in a “critical condition” according to police.

The collision, which happened at about 7.55pm on the A449 northbound lane near to the A4113 junction, left the car sitting on the central reservation with significant damage to its right-hand side.

The driver of the lorry, a man in his 60s from Stourport, was not injured.

An off-duty British Association for Immediate Care (BASICS) doctor was the first medical professional at the scene and was quickly backed up by an ambulance, a paramedic officer and the Medical Emergency Response Intervention Team (MERIT) trauma doctor.

A West Midlands Ambulance Service spokesman said: “On arrival crews found the car on the central reservation with very significant intrusion into the right-hand side of the car.

“The car driver, who was thought to be in his 30s, had suffered a very serious head injury.

“Ambulance staff worked with firefighters to rapidly extricate the man from the wreckage.

“The lorry driver was uninjured and was discharged at scene.”

Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service crews from Worcester, Droitwich and Stourport arrived at the incident at 8.07pm and had freed the trapped casualty by 8.27pm.

West Mercia Police also attended the incident, which caused the A449 to be closed in both directions.

The A449 between Worcester and Kidderminster is a notorious accident black spot, with several serious collisions occurring in recent years.

In February Robert Coulson, a 71-year-old from Quarry Bank, died after his van collided with an oil tanker on a section of the road near Hartlebury.

But Cllr Peter Tomlinson, who represents Ombersley at Wychavon District Council, said the A449 had become “much safer” since 50mph limits were introduced.

He added: “The reputation the road once had is not relevant to the modern A449.”