A man was badly injured when he was walking to work. When a dark grey convertible Volskwagen Golf was shunted onto the pavement,on Colchester's North Hill

The incident happened opposite the Sixth Form College at about 8.45am. Today 28th April 2009

Gary Sanderson, from the East of England Ambulance Service, said: "We dispatched one ambulance, two ambulance officers and two doctors to the scene."

Paramedics spent 45 minutes working on the casualty, before he was taken to Colchester General Hospital.

It was initially feared his injuries were life-threatening, but his condition was later reported to be serious but stable.

Because of the extensive damage to the 16th Century building that the car collided with, Specialist units of the Urban Search and Rescue team were employed to assess the possibility of the collapse of the front of the building, before the Paramedics could work in safety.

Staff from the college rushed to help the pedestrian, while dozens of students gathered on the street to watch the emergency services.