Carnage was narrowly avoided when a car smashed into a bollard in Falmouth town centre during the sea shanty festival on Sunday.

Reports suggest that a well meaning member of the public had let the handbrake off the silver Audi TT to allow a bus pass along the narrow High Street, and narrowly avoided serious injury as the car rolled away before smashing into the bollard and a wall outside an antique shop at the bottom of the hill.

David Saunby, a Falmouth Town Councillor who went to the scene after hearing "a loud bang," said the car had been parked in front of an Italian restaurant on High Street, stopping an open-topped park and ride bus from getting through, and while the owner was unloading a passerby jumped in and let the hand brake off, but could not turn the wheel as the steering was locked.

"If it wasn't for the bollard stopping the car it could have been far worse with the car ending up in the shop front on the corner of Webber Street on the opposite side of the road with possible injuries to pedestrians.

He added: "If anyone had been looking in the antiques shop window at that time, there could have been a far worse situation."

Police and ambulance services were called to High Street at around 2pm to a collision between a vehicle and a wall or bollard.

Police reported that one man had suffered minor injuries during the incident and was taken to the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro for treatment.

The car is registered to London, belonging to a woman with an address in the Falmouth area.

Councillor Saunby returned to the scene on Monday morning, and said: "It seems to me that the bollard was the saviour. Without the bollard the car could have caused carnage by ending up down by the Prince of Wales pub or further.

"It doesn't bear thinking about."

Anyone with information on the incident can contact police on 101 or anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 quoting reference CR041319/15.

* A 42 year old man has been arrested in connection with an incident of aggravated vehicle taking and dangerous driving, and is currently on police bail to June 24, pending further enquiries.

Pic by Christine Alford