Three killed and one seriously hurt in crash
Northumbria PoliceThree people have been killed in a car crash which left a fourth victim in hospital with serious injuries.
A Volkswagon Polo and Hyundai i20 collided on the A1 between Denwick and South Charlton in Northumberland at 14:30 BST on Thursday.
The Hyundai driver, who was in his 80s, and a women passenger in her 70s died at the scene.
A woman in the Polo, who was in her 60s, was also pronounced dead, while the man driving that car, also in his 60s, was taken to hospital. Northumbria Police said the vehicles had been travelling in opposite directions when they collided.
The next of kin of the VW Polo occupants have been informed and are being supported by officers, while efforts "remain ongoing" to contact family members of the people who had been in the Hyundai.
A section of the road was closed for approximately seven hours while emergency services attended and an investigation is under way to find out what led to the crash.
Insp Steven Clare, of Northumbria Police, described it as "incredibly tragic" and said the force was appealing for anyone with information to contact them.
"We know this is a very busy stretch of road through Northumberland and there will have likely been many motorists passing in both directions," he said.
"We're especially keen to hear from anyone who did initially stop at the scene to help but left prior to police arriving."
