Saved by a wardrobe door: Sleeping boy, 15, miraculously shielded from flying bricks as car smashes into house

• Crash sent a ton and a half of debris flying into teenager's bedroom
• He was shielded from rubble by 'inch-thick' wardrobe door
• Youngster was just yards from death following terrifying 2am crash
• Scene resembled 'the aftermath of an earthquake'

A schoolboy had a miraculous escape when a car crashed into his bedroom - and his wardrobe door stopped him being crushed under more than a ton of bricks.

Ben London, 15, was asleep when an Audi careered out of control and smashed through the wall of his home at 2am.
The lucky teenager was shielded by the inch-thick wooden door as a ton and a half of bricks were sent flying into the room - crushing the end of his bed.

Impact: The convertible Audi crashed into 15-year-old Ben London's bedroom wall in the village of Strumpshaw, Norfolk, in the early hours of the morning

Saved: Ben was saved from the worst of the impact by an inch-thick bespoke wardrobe door after the car smashed into his room

Escape: The nose of the car came to rest five feet from the end of the youngster's bed. The wardrobe door can still be seen where Ben was laying

The car came to rest just five feet from the teenager’s bed, but he was protected by the well made door - which was part of an expensive bespoke wardrobe.
Locals in the village of Strumpshaw, Norfolk, likened the scene of devastation to the 'aftermath of an earthquake,' but, amazingly, Ben managed to escape with only minor cuts to his leg.

There were four people in the sporty Audi convertible which crashed into the house, one of whom suffered a head injury.

 

It appears that the car failed to stop at a junction in front of the house. The 32-year-old driver was arrested on suspicion of drink-driving and has been bailed until November 25. 
The damage to Ben’s parents’ barn conversion home is expected to run into tens of thousands of pounds.

The crash took place on Sunday but the embedded car has still not been removed after structural engineers warned the roof would collapse.

Damage: The wall and the building's roof were left badly damaged by the impact of the crash

Arrest: Police confirmed they have arrested a man on suspicion of drink-driving following the crash

Ben said: 'I had been asleep an hour when I woke up suddenly in a cloud of dust with something on top of me.

'I thought the roof had collapsed and that there were beams on top of me. I could not see anything much because of the dust.

'I eventually realised I was actually under a wardrobe door. I did not know what was going on. There was about a ton and a half of rubble in the room.

'But for the wardrobe door I would be dead from all the rubble landing on top of me.'
The youngster said he was shocked by the scale of the rubble that would have hit him.

'It was piled three foot high by the side of my bed and the bottom of the bed had been crushed,' he said.
Ben’s parents called police after the crash, while fire crews and structural engineers from nearby Norwich were also called out to assess the damage and make the scene safe.

Devastation: The scene of the crash was described as looking like 'the aftermath of an earthquake'

Shock: The damaged car has been left embedded in the smashed wall following fears over the safety of the house's roof

Rubble: The impact of the crash left rubble strewn over Ben's room and in the family's garden

Ben said: 'By the time the police had arrived my adrenaline had kicked in.

'I was joking with the officers that the driver could at least have paid us for parking.

'I was just happy to be alive.

'It has made me realise that you could die any day and I should get on and do all the stuff I want to instead of putting it off.'
Fire crew manager Mark Bedwell said: 'We found the car had collided with the house and caused considerable structural damage.

'We immediately evacuated the family from the property and called a structural engineer to come and inspect it.

'He advised it was best to leave the car in place until the house could be properly shored up.

'It was extremely lucky no-one was seriously injured.'

One of the car’s occupants was treated at Norfolk and Norwich Hospital for a minor head injury.