Person injured after car crashes into Palmerston North house

A person has been taken to hospital after a car crashed into a home in Palmerston North on Thursday.

Emergency services were called to the house on Amberley Avenue - in the suburb of Highbury - at about 11.50 am.

A police spokesperson said the vehicle has travelled through a perimeter wall and into the building.

The owner of the home said the vehicle ended up in the house's garage and they were grateful no one was home at the time.

They said the crash had come as "a very big shock" and they were facing a big cleanup.

The owner said security cameras showed a man running away from the scene and police had told them he had been taken into custody following the crash.

"All we know from the police is that a car came around the corner smashed straight through the fence and into our garage and a man was taken into custody," they said.

Locals took to social media to show a black SUV almost completely inside the brick building - with bricks strewn about the property and onto the roof of the home.

A police spokesperson said officers saw the car driving "erratically" on Amberley Avenue just before midday.

"Police initiated a pursuit briefly before abandoning due to the manner of driving.

"Police then received report of a car hitting a brick fence which had gone into a house on Strachan Way. The driver fled the scene and were located by police as they ran away from officers. They were injured, and police took them to hospital," the spokesperson said.

They said later enquiries showed the car had been stolen the previous day.

The car had since been removed from the house and police were continuing to investigate the matter.

Police said one person had received minor injuries and no arrests had been made at this stage.

The incident comes just days after a police officer was left in critical conditionafter being hit by a fleeing driver in Palmerston North.

Central District Commander Superintendent Dion Bennett said a driver had been signalled to stop about 2 am on Amberley Avenue but allegedly fled.

"Minutes later, the vehicle, which was not being pursued, hit a police officer laying spikes on Kairanga Bunnythorpe Road. The officer suffered critical injuries and was airlifted to Wellington Hospital, while a second officer was treated for minor injuries."

Two teens, aged 14 and 15, were arrested.

-RNZ