BLACK ice has led to a series of crashes across North Yorkshire this morning.

North Yorkshire Police said a car skidded on ice and came to rest in a ditch on the A167 in Sandhutton, Thirsk, at 5.30am.

"The driver was removed from the vehicle by firefighters and he was treated by ambulance crews," said a force spokesman.

A car slid through a fence in Selby Common, Selby, after hitting ice just before 6am, but the woman driver was not believed to have been injured, he said.

A Land Rover then flipped over after sliding down Runswick Bay Bank, near Whitby, at 7.10am but nobody was hurt and an hour later, a vehicled skidded on ice in Cecil Street, Harrogate, and collided with a parked car, causing minor damage.

A woman driving a 4x4 was injured when it skidded into the underside of a bridge beneath the A168 Sowerby, Thirsk.

"She was taken to hospital with non life-threatening injuries," said the spokesman, adding: “It’s extremely important to prepare your vehicle for driving in wintry conditions, drive to the conditions you experience and take extra care on the roads.”