ONE person has died and three others have been taken to hospital after a two-car crash on a rural Essex road.

ONE person has died and three others have been taken to hospital after a two-car crash on a rural Essex road.

The emergency services were called at about 8am this morning after the collision on Hedingham Road, near Halstead, which involved a Ford Focus and a Mercedes.

One person was certified dead at the scene while a man and two women were taken to nearby Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford.

Part of the road has been closed as an investigation is carried out.

A fifth person was involved in the crash but required only minor treatment at the scene.