Nine injured after car pursued by police crashes in east London | UK news

9 people were injured when a vehicle followed by police crashed in east London.

The Metropolitan Police said officers were trying to stop a vehicle they believed had been stolen.

The car failed to stop and a short pursuit followed before colliding with another vehicle in Ilford.

10 people, including those in both cars and a motorcycle driver, were treated at the scene. The London ambulance service (LAS) said nine people were taken to hospital.

The LAS said it was called at 12.30am to reports of a crash at the junction of Barley Lane and High Road.

Of those receiving treatment, five people aged between 14 and 46 were seriously injured, the Met said.

Police said the driver of the vehicle, a woman in her 20s, was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving, theft and failure to stop. He remains in the hospital.

The four passengers of the stolen vehicle (a woman in her 40s, a teenage girl and two men in their 20s) were also arrested on suspicion of being in the stolen vehicle. They also stay in the hospital.

The Met has issued a request for information and said the junction remains closed in all directions while investigations continue.

An LAS spokesman said it had deployed an air ambulance alongside other resources, including a hazardous areas response team, but did not explain why these experts were needed.

“We treated 10 patients at the scene and took nine to hospital. One person refused to receive further assistance,” the LAS said in a statement to Sky News.