A man has been left with life-threatening injuries following a crash on a north-east road yesterday.
A stretch of the A90 Peterhead to Fraserburgh road near St Fergus was sealed off for more than five hours after a Vauxhall Insignia collided with a tree at about 6.30am.
The driver, a man in his 40s, was airlifted to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary and is in a “very serious” condition.
Police closed the route and diverted traffic away from the scene until the road was reopened at about midday.
Michael Birnie, who lives near the A90, said the man was taken to hospital on board a Helimed aircraft.
He said: “I saw a yellow helicopter going away. You usually don’t get helicopters around here unless they are coming from offshore.”
And another man, who did not want to be named, said he helped a police officer cope with the warm conditions.
He said: “I went across and gave the policeman a bottle of water because he had been standing for so long.”
Peterhead North and Rattray councillor Dianne Beagrie and Anne Allan said their thoughts were with the casualty and his family.
Mrs Beagrie said: “Unfortunately the A90 Peterhead to Fraserburgh road has a track record of serious road traffic incidents.
“I wish the gentleman involved a speedy recovery and I am thinking of him and his family.”
Mrs Allan added: “I hope the driver, who I believe is very badly injured, manages to pull through.”
Their ward colleague councillor Alan Buchan called for improvements to be made to the section of A90 where the accident happened.
He said: “The road from the Balmoor Bridge to the Gas Terminal has several dangerous bends that have caused many serious accidents over the decades.
“The Balmoor Bridge and the road to the terminal should have been upgraded when the Peterhead bypass was put in place.”
Police confirmed they received the emergency call at about 6:30am.
A spokeswoman said: “A male in his 40s has been taken to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary in a life-threatening condition.”