A 19-year-old Luton man who was rushed to hospital after the car he was travelling in shot off a slip road and ended up in trees with its engine ripped out is said to be in a stable condition in Luton and Dunstable Hospital.

The accident on Saturday night also injured the driver of the car who lost control of the grey Ford Mondeo on the slip road to Lilley off the A505 between Luton and Hitchin. He was released from the same hospital yesterday after minor treatment.

A witness to the crash, a Berkshire man who was waiting with two police officers nearby for a recovery vehicle for his broken down car, said the force of the impact shot debris around them.

“We were arranging removal when the car came over the brow on the outside lane and then tried to cut across to make the slip road, but didn’t make it. We were so close debris rained down on us,” he said.

Police are appealing for other witnesses to the crash, or anyone who saw the Mondeo travelling with four other vehicles prior to the collision. If you can help, call Pc John Williams of Herts Police on 0845 33 00 222.