Young drivers were given a hard-hitting lesson in what being involved in a car crash is really like.

Members of a local car club and other visitors were given the chance to play crash victims while fire fighters used mechanical cutting equipment to free them.

Ian Davies, a firefighter with Garston’s white watch, took part in the demonstration at Garston Fire Station on Sunday.

He said: "The day went quite well, we had a reasonable response from people, it was just a safe driving awareness day.

"We invited a lot of car enthusiasts and they all turned up with their vehicles.

"I hope seeing what we do to free people had an impact on them."

Two old cars were supplied to the station by FMS Recovery to recreate the "RTC scenario".

Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue regularly take the demonstrations into schools to get the message across to learners and inexperienced drivers but is also used on other potentially high risk groups.

Mr Davies said: "People get a first-hand experience of what we do.

"The reason we do the demonstration is get the message across about the risks involved with driving while on a mobile phone, driving at night or driving a car that is in a bad condition."