A HORSE roaming the M25 had to be rescued by police after a car crash involving a horse box.

A Ford Focus collided with a Kia pulling a horse box on the stretch of the motorway between junction 28, at Brentwood, and junction 27, around 5.30pm on Saturday (October 2).

The Focus lost control, spun and flipped over ending up on the hard shoulder upside down.

The Kia car also lost control as the driver braked and ended up on the central barrier. The horse box was badly damaged and the horse escaped.

Firefighters were called by police to assist at the scene.

Crews from Loughton, Brentwood and two from Grays attended and had to use specialist cutting equipment to free one person who was trapped.

The Kia driver and horse owner, a woman from Ruislip, recaptured the horse but it was injured. It was treated by a vet at the scene and later taken to a veterinary unit for treatment.

The Kia driver was uninjured.

The woman driver of the Focus and a male passenger in her car, both in their early 20s and from Waltham Abbey, were taken to Whipps Cross Hospital and treated for neck and back injuries, cuts and bruises.

The road was closed while the casualties were released from the car, the horse recovered and the crash scene investigated.

Any witnesses who have not contacted police are asked to phone PC Mark Hibbert at Chigwell Road Policing Unit on: 0300 333 4444.