A DRIVER was saved from a blazing car by passers-by after it crashed into a tree in the middle of the night.

The driver, a 26-year-old man from Liss who suffered serious injuries, was pulled clear from the red Volvo estate by several other motorists in the vicinity just past midnight last Sunday.

The man, who has not been named, was rushed to the Royal Surrey County Hospital where on Wednesday he was said to be in a stable condition in the intensive care unit.

Two passengers also escaped from the Volvo after it came off the road in Rodgate Lane, near the Lythe Hill Hotel.

The front seat passenger suffered concussion and another rear seat passenger shock.

Firefighters from Haslemere and Dunsfold arrived on the scene in minutes to find the vehicle well alight and the driver being pulled clear of the burning wreckage.

Two firefighters wearing breathing apparatus extinguished the flames and first aid and oxygen was administered to the driver until ambulances and the police arrived at the scene.

"If it hadn't been for the public and their quick actions, this could have been a lot more serious," said Haslemere fire and rescue sub officer Larry Bennett.

The road was blocked in both directions with diversions set up through Lurgashall with the road finally reopened at just after 5 am.