One woman has died and four others injured after a serious car crash near Colchester.

It happened just after 1pm in Peldon Road, Little Wigborough near Abberton Reservoir.

Two air ambulances, from Essex and Hertfordshire, were sent to the scene along with three ambulances, two ambulance officers and a rapid response vehicle.

Essex Police has now announced one of the five people involved in the crash, a woman believed to be in her 80s and from Hertfordshire who was a passenger in a Vauxhall Astra, has died as a result of the crash.

The car was in collision with a Volkswagen Polo travelling in the opposite direction.

The driver of the Astra was a woman in her 50s from Mayland. She was taken to Colchester General Hospital for treatment to injuries which are not believed to be serious.

The driver of the Polo, a 37-year-old woman, and a passenger, a five-year-old girl, were both taken to the Royal London Hospital for treatment to serious injuries.

A two-year-old girl who was also in the car has gone to Colchester General Hospital but she is thought to have only minor injuries.

They are all believed to be from the Chester area.

Peldon Road remains closed while the scene is cleared but is likely to reopen in the next hour.

An investigation into the cause of the collision is being carried out by the Essex Police’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit.

Any witnesses to what happened or who saw the vehicles on the road prior to the collision are asked to call the unit on 101.

Earlier a spokesman for the East of England Ambulance Service confirmed a suspected broken leg and pelvis, and abdominal and chest injuries had been suffered by the patients taken to the Royal London Hospital.

They also said one of the patients taken to Colchester General Hospital had suffered a neck injury.