A BURNLEY man was fighting for his life in hospital last night after his car crashed into a wall then hit a parked car and a van.

The 45-year-old man, named locally as David Burns, was placed in an induced coma by doctors at Royal Preston Hospital after suffering a serious head injury.

Police had to close Burnley Road, Bacup, for seven hours after the crash at 4.20am yesterday. An investigation into the circumstances has now been launched.

The driver lost control on a bend near Northern Primary School sending his Ford Focus into a curb then a stone wall.

The car then rebounded into a parked Ford Fiesta, shoving the stationery vehicle five metres down the road and writing it off.

The Focus then span off, hitting a van parked 20metres away on the opposite side of the road.

Simon Dalley and Rachel Weinhold, who have a four-year-old son, Leon, were woken up when the car smashed into the wall beside their house and shook their home.

Mrs Weinhold, a 32-year-old copywriter for the NHS, said: “We went to the window immediately and there was debris still flying down the road.

“We both ran outside to see what had happened and his car was still steaming, so we went over to see if the driver was okay. We were really concerned when we saw the state of our car and his.

“I rang the ambulance and opened the car door. The driver was lolling around on the passenger seat and there was blood on the airbag and a cut on his head.

“I knew he could hear me because he was moving a bit and trying to speak but he couldn’t respond.

“I could see he was breathing, but not normally, and the paramedics over the phone told me not to move him, so I stroked his arm and talked calmly to him.”

The couple are in the process of moving into Broadclough Farm from their home in Chorley, and have become increasingly concerned by the ‘dangerous’ speed many drivers travel along Burnley Road.

Mr Dalley, a 33-year-old marketing manager for Obas Group in Longridge, said: “We really hope the driver’s okay. He must have been going at a real speed to lose control and crash like he did.

“Speeding is a real problem on this road. Because we’re so close to the moors, when people are coming down the hill from Weir, they drive like they’re still in open countryside, doing 60 mph.

“It’s a real concern because Leon is starting at Northern Primary School in September and all the way along here is an accident blackspot.”

Ward Coun Jimmy Eaton said it is time traffic calming measures were installed.

He said: “It’s not that long ago that a lady was killed not so far away from where this accident took place, and that wasn’t the first.

“There have been many accidents along that stretch in recent times and I’m very concerned that there will be another fatality if something isn’t done.

“Signage, making drivers aware of the hazards, is the least that needs to be done. We’ve made these calls time and time again and nothing has been done.”

A Lancashire Constabulary spokesman said two ambulances, and police and fire officers attended.

“Firefighters from Bacup fire station used specialist cutting equipment to free the man, and he was rushed to hospital.

“There was a lot of debris in the road following the accident.”

Sgt Dave Hogarth, Roads Policing Officer, said: “The man involved is in hospital as a result of his injuries and we are keen to discover exactly what has happened.

“Anyone with information can contact us on 101, quoting log number 131 of 25/4.”