FIVE men were injured, three seriously, after a crash on the A127, near West Horndon, on Monday night.

At about 9.30pm a blue Ford C-Max driven by a 74-year-old man, from Wickford, collided with a silver Chrysler Sebring carrying four men aged between 18 and 21 on the Southend-bound carriageway.

The crash forced the closure of both sides of the dual carriageway until 4.20am while the scene was cleared. One of the vehicles hit with the central reservation barrier.

An 18-year-old, who was in the Chrysler, was taken to the Royal London Hospital with “critical injuries” after being thrown from the car.

Ambulance spokesman Dave Wright said: “Three patients received serious injuries and following treatment and stabilisation by paramedics, they were taken to Basildon, Queens and the Royal London Hospital for further care.

“Two further patients were assessed at the scene and did not require hospitalisation.”

This incident came just 24 hours after a car crashed into a tree along the same stretch of road.

Two women were taken to Basildon Hospital for treatment, with paramedics describing their injuries as “non-life threatening”.

Anyone with information about Monday night’s incident is urged to contact Essex Police’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit on 101.