A DRIVER has been airlifted to hospital after he ploughed through a fence and crashed five metres down into a Blackburn river.

The 23-year-old man suffered a suspected broken leg this morning after being trapped in his car.

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Four fire crews and paramedics cut the injured man free after passers-by in Philips Road heard his cries for help.

A broken fence at the scene was cordoned off, while wooden panel could still be seen floating in the shallow waterway this afternoon.

Lee Cook, watch manager at Hyndburn fire station, said: "We went with an aerial appliance as the access to the car was quite tricky because it was so far down.

"We used the appliance to lower a platform down. The victim was put on a basket stretcher, moved on to the platform by paramedics, and taken to the air ambulance.

"We also assisted in the recovery of the vehicle, so were there for about two-and-a-half hours in total."

The River Blakewater passes underneath Philips Road, between Glenfield Court and Harwood Gate, near the Beechwood Road mini-roundabout.

Lancashire police said the incident was not subject to a criminal investigation, and there was no suggestion at present that the driver had been drinking.

A spokeswoman for the North West Ambulance Service said: “We received a call at 9.05am.

“The patient was out of the car by the time we arrived on the scene.

“It would appear that he had been sitting in the car for some time.

“He has been airlifted to Royal Preston Hospital with a suspected broken leg.”