A PEDESTRIAN was seriously hurt when a car careered into him on a busy Colchester street.

John Pearce, of Hamilton Road, Colchester, who is in his forties, was walking to work at North Hill Barbers, when a car was shunted on to the pavement opposite the Sixth Form College, at 8.45am yesterday.

The grey Volkswagen Golf convertible crushed him against the building and, then careered backwards.

It is thought a silver Renault Scenic car was also involved in the accident.

At first, it was unclear if the pedestrian was trapped against the wall, but it was quickly established he was lying beside the car.

Mr Pearce suffered serious injuries, initially thought to be life-threatening. The drivers of the two vehicles involved were badly shaken, but unhurt. Police closed the road and an ambulance, two paramedics and two doctors were sent to the scene, where they spent 45 minutes working on Mr Pearce on the pavement. He was then taken to Colchester General Hospital.

Gary Sanderson, from the East of England Ambulance Service, said: “We were called at 8.46am to a report of a man trapped against a wall between a car. The man had sustained serious injuries.

“A team of paramedics and doctors took the patient to Colchester General Hospital with potentially life-threatening injuries.”

He was later found to have serious leg and pelvic injuries, but his life was not considered to be at risk.

Firefighters from Colchester were called to assess the building, as debris was scattered across the pavement after the car hit it.

They made sure it was safe while ambulance crews treated the man, before calling in a specialist team to shore up the building.

The Urban Search and Rescue Team, based in Lexden, used specialist equipment to make the building safe.

An engineer from Colchester Council also checked to ensure it was not likely to collapse.

The road remained closed until 10.30am, but firefighters and officers remained on scene until lunchtime.

Dozens of students were making their way into college at the time of the crash, and gathered on the street to watch the drama.

Police say it is unlikely charges will be brought, but they are appealing for anyone who witnessed the crash to call PC Steve Licence, of Stanway road policing unit, on 0300 3334444.