A66 crash: Seven dead including two police officers after wrong-way collision

Tributes paid after the A66 crash

The Volkswagen Passat, carrying five teenagers, struck a marked police vehicle in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Cleveland Police said all occupants of both cars were pronounced dead at the scene in South Bank at about 3.39am.

The officers were named as PC Matthew Blades, 37, and PC Tom Clough, 38.

They were travelling in the correct direction in a marked armed response vehicle when it was hit by the Passat. Fourteen ambulance crews attended.

Officers had been pursuing a car shortly beforehand, but the chase was abandoned and the police vehicle involved was not part of it, the BBC understands.

Security footage filmed on Lime Road at 3.36am appears to show police cars following a vehicle three minutes before the crash, as The Independent reported.

Chief Constable Victoria Fuller, speaking outside the force’s Middlesbrough headquarters, called it “an incredibly sad day for Cleveland”.

"These were brave officers protecting our communities and serving our residents who didn’t return home to their families at the end of their shift." she added.

"My thoughts and thoughts of everybody here at Cleveland Police are with their family, friends, colleagues and loved ones at this incredibly difficult time."

Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he was “devastated” and urged people to “avoid speculation at this time”.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said Cleveland Police had her support “as they work to identify all those involved”.

Fuller said all occupants of the Passat had been identified, with family liaison officers deployed.