A WOMAN is said to be in a serious but stable condition after being involved in a collision with a stationary police Land Rover on the A12.

The motorist, believed to be in her 60s or 70s, was airlifted to Royal London Hospital, in Whitechapel, with serious head injuries following the incident on the northbound carriageway at Marks Tey on Friday.

Also inside the vehicle with her were two Dalmatian dogs. A police spokeswoman said one of the dogs had sadly died at the scene and the other is being treated by vets and is expected to make a full recovery.

A spokesman for Essex Police last night confirmed that the vehicle would have been using its blue flashing lights and was “dealing with an incident on the carriageway”. The Land Rover was stationary at the side of the road after responding to a call for assistance after the glass roof of a Renault Clio was damaged on the northbound carriageway after being hit by flying debris.

The Land Rover was almost completely on the grass verge when it was struck from behind by the Citroen 2CV being driven by a woman from south east London.

The male police constable, who was driving the Land Rover, was taken by ambulance to Colchester General Hospital with minor injuries.

Also inside the Land Rover at the time of the collision was the woman driver of the Clio. She was uninjured.

Emergency services were initially called to the scene at 3.40pm yesterday after reports of an accident involving a Citroen 2CV and a Land Rover between Junctions 25 and 26 of the A12.

Fire crews from Essex County Fire and Rescue spent almost an hour cutting free the female driver of the Citroen, using specialist tools.

The A12 was closed in both directions while emergency services worked at the scene, causing major rush-hour tailbacks on surrounding routes, including the A120.

The road was completely reopened by about 6pm, but delays continued for some time afterwards. It is the second collision involving an Essex Police vehicle this year.

In February, a police constable driving a Ford estate car – which was responding to an emergency call – was in collision with a Mazda MX5 in Barrack Street, Colchester.

The impact sent the sports car veering into the corner of a house, which had to be propped up amid fears part of it would collapse.

Witnesses said the Mazda was turning right into Victor Road when the collision happened. The sports car ploughed through a brick wall and struck the corner of a house.

No-one was seriously injured in the collision. The female driver of the Mazda – who was believed to be in her 30s – suffered a bump on the head but was not taken to hospital. There were two police officers in the Ford Focus estate car, one of whom was taken to hospital with a hand injury.

The East Anglian Daily Times reported last month that prosecutors will now decide whether to start criminal proceedings against the police driver.

A spokesman for Essex Police said more information about yesterday’s incident on the A12 would be released in due time.

Meanwhile, there was also traffic misery on the A14 yesterday morning after a four-vehicle collision at the Girton Interchange.

A man and a woman were taken to Addenbrooke’s Hospital, in Cambridge, with minor injuries after the incident involving a caravan and a van and two other vehicles.

Anyone with any information about yesterday’s incident is asked to contact the Serious Collision Investigation Unit on 101 or by email at collisionappeal@essex.pnn.police.uk