Frith Lane at the scene of the collision
(Picture: John Dunne)Witnesses told how they tried to save a teenager who died after the car he was in ploughed into a tree in north London.
The 17-year-old passenger sustained fatal injuries when the vehicle veered off Frith Lane, Barnet, after a minor collision with a taxi.
Residents on nearby David Wildman Close raced out to try to help after the collision at around 11pm on Saturday just yards from Finchley Golf Club.
A resident, 44, said: “We heard a bang and looked out and there was a car that had crashed and it’s hazard lights were flashing on and off.
“We didn’t realise at first that there was an injured boy slumped in the back seat because the air-bags were covering part of the inside of the car.
“He was alive because his hands were moving, people were trying to help him. It looked like he was in deep shock.
“Very quickly paramedics and police arrived.
“He was cut out of the car and they were giving him CPR and working on him for what must have been an hour. There were desperate scenes. The poor boy - we feel so sorry for his family.”
Another said: “There was an almighty bang and we all ran out.
“The car was in the road with the boy inside.
“People are trying to help him before the paramedics arrived. It was chaos here as emergency services pulled in.
“It was carnage. We just feel so sorry for the boy’s family.
“After hitting the tree the car travelled for about thirty yards before stopping in the middle of the road.”
Another witness said: “The taxi driver stopped it looked like he was calling the police.”
A Scotland Yard spokesman said three people were later arrested and remain in custody.
He said: “Initial enquiries suggest the car had been involved in a minor collision with a taxi before colliding with a tree.
“The driver of the taxi stopped at the scene. He was not arrested and is helping with our enquiries.”
