A POLICE officer escaped with his life when a tree fell on the van he was driving in Odiham, on Sunday morning.

Fire crews had to cut the special constable out of his British Transport Police van, which was crushed under the branches.

A tree surgeon was called after the accident at Dunley's Hill, during wind and rain.

The officer was taken to North Hampshire Hospital, at Basingstoke, where his injuries were described as "serious but not life-threatening" by a British Transport Police spokesman.

Police closed the road between the junctions with Bridge Road and Western Lane to allow for the recovery of the vehicle and the removal of the tree.