A Stratford woman has been charged following a crash Thursday night that sent five people to hospital.

The collision happened shortly after 7 p.m. at the intersection of Fairview Road and John Wise Line in Central Elgin, south of St. Thomas.

OPP say a Dodge Durango was travelling along Fairview when it was struck on the passenger side by a Toyota Matrix.

The impact of the crash sent both vehicles into a nearby ditch.

The driver of the Durango, a 42-year-old Tecumseh man, along with the front-seat passenger, a 37-year-old Kingsville man, were transported to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

The passenger in the rear of the SUV, a 33-year-old Kingsville woman, had to be extricated from the vehicle. She was airlifted to a London hospital – her injuries are considered serious, but non-life threatening.

The driver of the Matrix, Mahsa Ghassemi, 19, and her passenger, a 20-year-old Springfield woman had to be extricated from their vehicle.  Both were sent to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Ghassemi is charged with careless driving – she will appear in a St. Thomas court at a future date.