Searching for driver after BMW crashes

Collision investigators are searching for the driver of a car after it was flipped onto its side after it came off a road and smashed into a fence and streetlight.

Northumbria Police were called to Hylton Bank in South Hylton yesterday after the black BMW 3 Series crashed at the junction of Greenbank Drive.

When officers arrived, they found the driver and anyone else who had been in the vehicle had already got out the car and left the scene.

Now inquiries are under way to find them, with any witnesses urged to get in contact with police, who remained on the scene until it was recovered.

The aftermath of the scene showed where the car had struck the street sign for Greenbank Drive and then collided with a fence and part of a wall, a section of railings and a street light, as well as part of a hedge, with the car’s registration plate torn off by the crash.

A spokesperson for Northumbria Police said: “Shortly before 10.40am today (Monday) we received a report of a one-vehicle collision on Hylton Bank, Sunderland.

“Officers attended and found a vehicle had overturned and collided with a fence and a street light.

"The driver had already left the scene.

“Inquiries are ongoing to trace the occupants.”

Traffic in the area faced delays as the scene was cleared.

The driver, or anyone who witnessed the collision, is asked to contact the force via the ‘Tell Us Something’ page of its website or by calling 101 quoting log 260 080221.