Four men have died after a car left the road and slammed into a lamp-post in Huyton, Merseyside, in the early hours of the morning.
The crash happened on Liverpool Road just before 2am, leaving all four occupants of the vehicle dead at the scene. Emergency services rushed to the area but there was nothing they could do to save the men.
Merseyside Police have launched an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the collision. The road was closed for several hours while officers carried out forensic examinations and worked to piece together exactly what happened in the moments before the car left the road.
The identities of the four men have not yet been formally confirmed, and police are working to notify their next of kin. Formal identification is expected to follow in the coming days.
Local residents woke to a heavy police presence on Liverpool Road, with cordons keeping members of the public away from the scene. Flowers and tributes began to appear at the roadside as news of the tragedy spread through the community.
Anyone who was in the area at the time and may have witnessed the crash, or anyone with dashcam footage from Liverpool Road in the early hours, has been urged to contact Merseyside Police as soon as possible.
The deaths will be referred to the coroner in due course. Investigations into the exact cause of the crash remain ongoing.