A FAMILY has told of the moment a car smashed into their home as they tended to their baby daughter in the middle of the night.

The couple, both 32, were awake with their 28-day-old daughter at their rented detached house in Totteridge Road at 1.35am when a Ford Mondeo careered into the house.

Fire crews from High Wycombe spent an hour and 15 minutes cutting the roof, pedals and steering wheel of the car to free the driver.

The mother, a software engineer who asked not to be named, said: "We were awake because of the baby. We were upstairs when it happened. We just heard a huge bang and then the horn sounding continuously. We thought it was a fire alarm or something. We didn't realise it was a car until we came downstairs.

"My mother was alseep in the bedroom directly above the corner where the car hit. She heard the noise and felt the house shake. She thought it was an earthquake."

A neighbour who lives opposite the house, which is on the corner of Wheelers Park, called 999 and is believed to have talked to the driver before emergency services arrived.

The family's gas supply has been cut off, leaving them without heating and unable to cook until inspectors can confirm the supply has not been damaged and if safe to reconnect.

They praised the emergency services for their fast response and efficient handling of the situation.

The smash damaged the porch of the house and left glass and bodywork debris scattered outside. It left large cracks to the outer and inner walls.

A police cordon has been set up around the front door, which no longer opens.

Building inspectors were called out as it was feared the structural damage to the house could have made it unsafe.

The residents are now awaiting a further inspection to see whether they will have to be moved to temporary accommodation.

The woman added: "We were told by police that the car was coming from the town centre, which means it was travelling uphill. We can't understand why it hit the house this way if it was coming from there."

Steve Hawkins, watch manager at High Wycombe fire station, said the car's engine compartment had been pushed back onto the man, pinning him inside the car.

"It had gone in front ways but he'd basically caught the front side of the house on the driver's side front, and basically pushed the car back onto him," he added.

The driver was taken to Stoke Mandeville Hospital. His injuries are not yet known.