A shocked householder has told how he awoke to find a car had ploughed into his home.

Paul Johnson said it was like a "scene from hell" after the car slammed into the front of his house.

Miraculously the driver and three passengers walked away from the rubble unscathed.

Backseat passenger 22-year-old Richard Burns, of Chinchilla Road, Southend, was yesterday in a stable condition after being treated for serious head injuries.

Witnesses said the Orion ricocheted like a pinball off roadworks, a tree and a garden wall after the driver lost control on the Southend-bound carriageway of the A127.

The car eventually came to rest in the utility room of Paul Johnson's Prince Avenue home.

The driver, Stephen Mann, 24, from Gainsborough Drive, Westcliff, and three passengers, managed to crawl free from the wreckage.

Police said the hatchback car was travelling with the group and appealed to witnesses to the smash, which happened just before midnight on Friday. Witnesses should call 01268 775533.

"Scene from hell" - Paul Johnson outside his wrecked home

Picture: STEVE O'CONNELL

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