Two pensioners were taken to Oxford's John Radcliffe Hospital yesterday after their car was involved in a crash in Eynsham.

Police said an 83-year-old man suffered potentially life-threatening chest injuries during the incident in Acre End Street at 4.30pm. An elderly woman, who was also travelling in the car, had to be cut free.

The two victims were in a grey Daewoo Nexia which was travelling along the narrow street from Witney Road when the accident occurred. The car hit a parked Citroen Xsara, which tipped over in front of a house.

The Nexia lost a wheel in the impact and also chipped the windowsill of a house before smashing into a red Peugeot 106. The Peugeot then hit a Renault 19 which collided with a white van.

Beverly Rustron, the owner of the Citroen Xsara, said: "I had just taken my dog Rolo for a walk and was standing on the pavement when this car came down the road and hit my car, flipping it over.

"It's a big shock. It was like a bomb going off. It was all so sudden."

Sgt Jack Hawkins, of Bicester Roads Policing, said: "It looks quite bad but it may not have been a high-speed impact."