Rally car careers off track and hits spectators

A father flipped over the top of a rally car after his two young sons “flew up into the air”, when the vehicle careered off the track and hit spectators at the Royal Bath and West Showground in Shepton Mallet, Somerset.

A spokesperson for the South Western Ambulance Service said “our officer at the scene said this had the potential to be much more serious than fortunately it turned out to be,” after the boys sustained injuries to their legs, and their father was airlifted to the Bath Royal United Hospital with them.

A fourth person was treated and discharged from the scene.

The incident happened just before midday on Saturday. The condition of the rally driver involved in the crash in as of yet unknown.

The car, thought to have been a Subaru Impreza, skidded across the grass as it attempted to take a corner, an eyewitness told the Shepton Mallet Journal.

“Although the crowd was probably 20 to 30 metres away from the track the car carried on going its way into a young family, two young lads, eight or nine years old, and their dad,” they said.

“I saw the young lads fly up into the air the dad flew over the top of the car and then it came to a stop and the driver was in a bit of a state, psychologically, kicking the car, he was very upset about what had happened.”

The accident happened at the Regency Stages Rally, which features 55 miles of tarmac rallying across 10 stages.

A spokesperson for Avon and Somerset Police said: “There is a joint investigation involving the police and the Health and Safety Executive into the incident.”