Three teenagers and a taxi driver have died and five other people are injured following a serious crash in the early hours of this morning.

The collision, which involved a Citroen C4 Picasso private hire vehicle and a Seat Leon, occurred around 12.45am on Wigan Road, in Bolton, Greater Manchester.

Residents reported hearing a ‘very loud bang’ and seeing emergency services performing CPR on injured passengers on the roadside.

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Both drivers were killed, along with two passengers who were travelling in the red Seat vehicle.

Shocking CCTV from a nearby property showed the Seat apparently travelling at high speed on the wrong side of the 30mph road, before smashing head-on into the taxi, which was driving in the opposite direction.

After the impact, the Seat could be seen spinning across the carriageway, sending debris flying, before hitting a parked car and coming to a stop, with smoke billowing from its engine.

Police said the deceased included three teenagers, two aged 18 and one aged 19, and a man in his 50’s, thought to be the taxi driver, although they stressed formal identification was yet to take place.

Another five passengers were taken to hospital, where they are currently being treated.

The Citroen Picasso, removed from the scene on Wigan Road, Bolton, this morning was very badly damaged in the crash
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The Citroen Picasso, removed from the scene on Wigan Road, Bolton, this morning was very badly damaged in the crash

Four people died and five others were injured in the accident in Bolton just before 1am this morning
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Four people died and five others were injured in the accident in Bolton just before 1am this morning

Another image showed the mangled bonnet and engine of the Picasso as it was loaded onto a recovery truck
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Another image showed the mangled bonnet and engine of the Picasso as it was loaded onto a recovery truck

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This afternoon the names of the teenagers and the taxi driver were released by Bolton Council of Mosques, who asked people to pray for their families.

In separate statements on X, the deceased were identified as Muhammad Danyaal Asghar Ali, Farhan Patel and Mohammed Jibrael Mukhtar, all of Bolton.

Mosrab Ali, of Blackburn, who is believed to be the taxi driver, was also named as one of those killed.

A letter from BCoM’s executive team, also tweeted on X, said the mosque was ‘closely supporting’ relatives and liaising with the appropriate authorities.

The road was closed for more than 14 hours by officers from Greater Manchester Police‘s Serious Collision Investigation Unit before being re-opened around 3.15pm.

Both vehicles, which suffered extensive damage, were earlier removed from the scene.

Speaking from the collision site this afternoon Chief Inspector Helen McCormack, of Greater Manchester Police, said emergency crews were faced with a ‘challenging scene.’

‘This was a devastating incident for all those involved, none more so than the families of the deceased,’ she said.

‘This is a tragic reminder of the importance of safety on our roads across Greater Manchester, and here in Bolton, where plenty of work has been done and continues to try and ensure our roads are safe for all.

‘We have massively reduced the number of serious and fatal collisions in Bolton and significantly increased our proactivity, but we’ve all got much more to do.

‘One incident is one too many and will do nothing to bring back the four lives lost here today.

‘My thoughts are with everyone affected.’

Ms McCormack confirmed officers were aware of a Snapchat video taken before the crash, which showed a car travelling at 120mph, but said they had yet to establish whether it was connected to the accident.