A woman suffered serious injuries after the car she was in left the road and collided with a road sign and telegraph pole. The collision happened at 11.40pm on Tuesday, 22nd August on Maude Terrace, near Greenfields Road in St. Helen Auckland. A 27-year-old man was driving a Ford Focus RS when, for an unknown reason, it left the road and collided with a road sign and telegraph pole before coming to a halt. The driver fled the scene and has not yet been traced. His passenger, a 28-yearold woman, was trapped in the car before being taken to James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough, with serious injuries. Nobody else was in the car at the time of the collision. The road was closed between 11.40pm and 4.00am. No other vehicles were involved. Any witnesses to the collision, or anyone who knows any information on the whereabouts of the driver should call Durham Police on 101, quoting incident number 552 of August 22.