Navigator recovering after rally car smash

A RALLY car navigator was recovering in hospital last night after a serious crash at an event in Berwickshire.

Andy Richardson was rescued from the wreck by rally workers after the Fiesta R2 he was co-driving smashed into a tree during the Jim Clark Rally on Saturday.

Mr Richardson was pulled from the wrecked car and airlifted to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary by air ambulance following the smash near Duns around 11am.

He was being treated for back injuries although they are not thought to be life-threatening, while the racing driver Peter Taylor was uninjured.

Mr Richardson, from Penrith, was guiding Mr Taylor, from Carlisle, in the driver's first season when the crash happened.

A spokesman for the Jim Clark rally said: "

Exemplary work by rally rescue and medical personnel ensured that the co-driver was successfully extricated from the vehicle.

"He is reported to be in a stable condition."

The Jim Clark memorial rally is a 335-mile, two day event with Welsh ace Gwyndaf Evans taking the top spot in this year's event.