Woman driver seriously hurt when hit by stolen car

A woman driver is in Christchurch Hospital with serious injuries after her car was hit by a stolen vehicle early last night.

The woman's Toyota was hit about 7.30pm by a Subaru car stolen a short time earlier from the Centennial Pools in the city.

The stolen car was chased by police for a short distance before police called off the chase because of the erratic driving and because the car was driven the wrong way down a one-way street.

Police said soon after the chase was called off for safety reasons the stolen car hit the woman's Toyota.

She was seriously hurt and her passenger received moderate injuries. Two others from the stolen car were also taken to hospital.

One of the cars hit a building after the impact at the intersection of Tuam and Durham streets.

- NZPA