Paramedics and passers-by fought to save a man who was pronounced dead at the scene of a head-on collision.

Fakenham & Wells Times: Emergency services at the scene. Picture: Ian BurtEmergency services at the scene. Picture: Ian Burt (Image: Archant 2016)

The driver, believed to be in his 30s, was overtaking a lorry when his Mitsubishi Colt ploughed into a VW Tiguan on the A148 at Bale, between Fakenham and Holt, on Monday afternoon.

The crash happened yards from the Countryside Filling Station, a BP garage near the junction with Field Dalling Road and Sharrington Road, on a stretch where the speed limit is 60mph.

Manager Paul Wheller was working in his office, which overlooks the main road, at around 4pm when the collision occurred.

“There was a hell of a bang,” he said. “I looked out of the window and saw the car, it had smoke coming out of it.

Fakenham & Wells Times: The scene of the collision on the A148 between Fakenham and Holt, in which a man in his 30s died. Picture: Chris BishopThe scene of the collision on the A148 between Fakenham and Holt, in which a man in his 30s died. Picture: Chris Bishop (Image: Archant)

“I could make out the other vehicle it had hit on the other side of the road.

“I got my hi-vis jacket on and ran out to assesss the situation. It was carnage, there were bits of engines, bumpers and oil all over the road. There was a guy who looked like he was in trouble in the red car.”

Fearing a spark from a battery could ignite spilt fuel and cause a fire, Mr Wheller ran back to his forecourt and grabbed a fire extinguisher.

A passer-by was trying to help the driver and the first paramedic arrived on the scene within minutes. Mr Wheller other people lifted doors out of the back of the Colt, to give medics more room to work on the injured man, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Specialist officers are today still investigating the crash. They believe the Mitsubishi was travelling towards Fakenham and the VW was travelling in the opposite direction, towards Holt, when the two vehicles collided.

Norfolk police said: “The driver of the Mitsubishi, a man in his 30s, sadly died at the scene as a result of his injuries. The driver and passenger of the VW, a man and woman, suffered minor injuries.

“Police are keen to hear from anyone who may have witnessed the collision or has information concerning the driving manner of either vehicle prior to the incident.”

The East Anglian Ambulance Service sent an ambulance, rapid response vehicle, an ambulance officer and the East Anglian air ambulance to the collision.

Tne road was closed in both directions until 10.45pm on Monday.

The driver who died has not yet been named. His death is the 20th fatality on Norfolk’s roads this year and the seventh to occur this month.

Witnesses should contact Norfolk police’s serious collision investigation team on 101.