FOUR women were still in a serious condition last night after a coach crash at the weekend.

Thirteen women were being treated in hospitals in Cumbria yesterday after a Women's Institute day trip from Stakeford, near Ashington, Northumberland, ended in disaster as the coach approached Ambleside, in the Lake District.

The driver, Fred Messenger, 53, lost control as he drove down a steep and narrow road, known as The Struggle, just after midday on Saturday.

The seriously injured are a 59-year-old woman at Preston Royal Infirmary; a 55-year-old at the West Cumberland Hospital, in Whitehaven; a 68-year-old at Furness General Hospital, and a woman, whose age has not been given, at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary.

Ian Cumming, chief executive of Morecambe Bay Hospitals NHS Trust, said: "The majority of the patients are stable and comfortable. They are just being kept in hospital because they still need some attention to their injuries."

The Drive For Freedom Travel coach was carrying 43 passengers when it careered into a dry stone wall and plunged 20ft into a garden.