A man has been taken to hospital with serious injuries after the car he was travelling in hit a telegraph pole on a stretch of road in County Durham. 

The incident happened at about 1.35pm on Sunday (July 7) - which saw police cars and paramedics attend the one-car crash on Hedleyhill Lane, near Cornsay Colliery. 

The stretch of road was closed for several hours during the incident, to allow emergency services to work at the scene. 

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Durham Police has since confirmed that a man, the only person involved in the crash, had been taken to hospital in a serious condition. 

A spokesperson for the police force said: "Police were called at 1.35pm yesterday (July 7) to a one-vehicle collision on Hedleyhill Lane, near Cornsay Colliery, in which a car had collided with a telegraph pole.

"The male driver and sole occupant of the car was seriously injured and taken to hospital for treatment."