One person died and several passengers were injured yesterday in a crash between two buses.

The accident happened in the Newfield area of Chester-le-Street, County Durham, just after 4 p.m.

Durham Police said three passengers had been taken to hospital with what was thought to be minor injuries.

Another person was being cut free from the wreckage by emergency services.

"There has been a collision between two single deck buses," a Durham Police spokesman said.

"At present it is known that one person has died and a number of passengers have been injured. Two air ambulances have been drafted to the scene along with several ordinary ambulances. Fire and rescue are also there. At least one person is being cut free. Three people have been taken to hospital with what are believed to be at this time to be minor injuries."

Police said the scene of the crash, North View, was closed for some time.

Local resident Jacqueline Robinson, 45, a mother-of-three, said: "It's happened just outside but I've not been out to see what's happening because there are children here and I don't want them going out there.

"One of the vehicles is up on the pavement - they are both still upright. It's a very nasty thing to have happened. We've not had anything like this before."

The accident happened in a residential area a couple of miles outside Chester-le-Street, she said.

Eyewitnesses described hearing the crash between a small single-decker bus and a coach.

Rob Purvis, 44, of Newfield, who was one of the first on the scene, told reporters: "It was bad to see".

Mr Purvis said he went to help the passengers on the bus but he was unable to get on board because of the severity of the crash.

"No-one actually saw it but people heard a bang," he said.

"I was coming down the road in my car and saw that the bus looked as if it had crashed into the hedge and somehow another bus was involved."

Police later confirmed that the person who died was the driver of the bus while the driver of the coach was taken to hospital by air ambulance.

The three bus passengers taken to hospital with suspected minor injuries were all elderly.

Eyewitnesses said the bus, which was operating a local service around the town, was travelling downhill along North View, while the coach, which was empty apart from the driver, was travelling in the opposite direction.

Janet Bell, who lives nearby, said: "I've been outside and there are people from fire brigade, police and ambulance there.

"It looks like the vehicles crashed head on. We've not had anything like this before. It's a 30 mph limit and cars go too fast along there."