A four-year-old boy was fighting for his life last night after he was hit by a car which mounted the pavement of a Birmingham street and struck a house.
The boy, who was passing the house in Cartland Road, Stirchley, with a ten-year-old playmate at the time of the accident, suffered head injuries and multiple fractures.
He was taken to Birmingham Children's Hospital along with the other boy, who is under-stood to have suffered serious, but non life-threatening, injuries.
A 49-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving, a police spokesman said.
Jake Oliver, a 28-year-old outdoor education specialist, was working upstairs in the house at the time of the accident.
He said the car had crashed through a wire fence and torn out several concrete posts before colliding with the house.
"My wife Eleanor and I just looked at each other and thought, 'what's going on?'", he said. "I looked out of the window and saw a car in front. I came down to make sure nobody was hurt and there were already people on the scene, including a man with an NHS transport van who had been passing.
"I saw two boys. The younger one was in a really bad way. He was right up against the wall of the house. The adrenaline was going but I was able to stay calm because of what I do for a living."
Mr Oliver said the younger boy's father had arrived at the scene and tried to comfort his son before he was taken to hospital.
The driver of the car suffered whiplash and cuts to his hand. He was taken to hospital before being arrested.
Police want to speak to anyone who witnessed the collision or who saw the vehicle being driven in the Stirchley area before the incident. Anyone with any information is asked to call Kings Heath police station on 0845 113 5000.
