Cleadon road re-opens as search for driver of stolen taxi which smashed into church hall goes on

A road which has been closed for more than two days after an accident left a building unsafe was set to re-open today.

By Gary Welford

Published 2nd Apr 2019, 11:52 BST- 1 min read

Updated 2nd Apr 2019, 11:59 BST

The damage left to the All Saints Church Hall in Front Street, Cleadon, after a stolen taxi crashed into it in the early hours of Sunday.

The A1018 Sunderland Road in Cleadon is due to reopen at lunchtime, following the smash in the early hours of Sunday.

The car - a taxi which had been stolen in South Shields after the driver got into an argument with a passenger about a fare - crashed into All Saints Church Hall on Front Street.

The building suffered extensive damage, and the driver fled the scene before police arrived.

A section of the street remained closed to traffic in both directions on Sunday, all day yesterday, and this morning while structural engineers examined the safety of the building.

The footpath will remain closed.

Northumbria Police are still trying to trace the driver who was at the wheel of the stolen taxi.