HEALTH chiefs have launched an investigation after two rear wheels fell off an ambulance answering an emergency call.

The incident, in Sunderland on Friday, has again raised questions about the US-made Chevrolet vehicles used by the North-East Ambulance Service.

North Durham MP Kevan Jones said the vehicles should be re-examined as a matter of urgency.

He said: "Ambulance crews have questioned their suitability in the North-East.

"You cannot have a situation where wheels are falling off ambulances responding to emergency calls."

No one was hurt in the incident.

Another ambulance dealt with the emergency which, the ambulance service said, was classed as serious but not life-threatening.

The service said that the vehicle involved had been withdrawn and was being examined, along with others in the fleet, and the incident was being investigated.

The Chevrolet vehicles used by the service were bought in the early 1990s by the former Northumbria Ambulance Service - which later merged with County Durham - and have suffered a number of mechanical failures.

In April, a paramedic suffered whiplash and injuries when his vehicle hit a crash barrier in Sunderland after the brakes and steering apparently failed.

The ambulances are reported to have been involved in four previous accidents.