A DRIVER who took a cocktail of cocaine and alcohol before ploughing into an ambulance on an emergency call was jailed yesterday.

Michael Andrew Foster, 24, of Washbrook Drive, Darlington, pleaded guilty to drink-driving and failing to surrender to custody, before South Durham Magistrates Court, in Darlington.

The court heard he had two previous convictions for drink-driving.

Martin Towers, prosecuting, said: "The incident occurred at 1.30am. A paramedic was driving an ambulance along North Road in Darlington with one of his colleagues. They were answering an emergency call at the time and the blue lights on the ambulance were turned on.

"The ambulance was stopped indicating to turn right onto Longfield Road. When it started moving the road was clear but as the ambulance was half way across the road, a car appeared and it seemed to be travelling at a very high speed.

"The car struck the side of the ambulance close to the front passenger door."

He told the court that police came straight away and tried to breathalyse Foster, who refused and he was arrested.

Later in interview, Foster told police he had been to a nightclub and drunk so much lager he could not remember anything. He also told them he had taken a gram of cocaine.

Peter Boddy, in mitigation, said he could not understand why the ambulance driver had not seen the car.

"The circumstances of the accident were very strange.

"I can't understand why an ambulance would be turning there when answering an emergency call.

"It seems as though they came from some other direction. I know the emergency service has a difficult job but how, when a driver is making a right turn, he didn't see a car coming up North Road, I don't know.

"I think it is significant that the defendant has not been charged with anything relating to bad driving.

"He had been to Club 2K where there is a policy to say drink as much as you like for £10. This causes all sorts of problems for the police and for young people who go there with such a ridiculous temptation."

Magistrates sentenced him to four months imprisonment and disqualified him from driving for five years.