A SUV launched over the staircase at the bottom of Duke Street in Lunenburg Friday morning. Photo: Evan Taylor

Emergency responders were called to a single-vehicle collision Friday morning in Lunenburg shortly after 10 a.m. where a vehicle had launched itself over a curb landing on the street below.

The vehicle was heading downhill on Duke Street towards Montague Street, where Duke ends and witnesses reported it sped up as it approached the intersection before launching off the curb and down towards the staircase below which leads to Bluenose Drive.

The SUV launched over a staircase, striking a pedestrian and light pole before coming to a rest on Bluenose Dr. Photo: Evan Taylor

While airborne the vehicle which was a large SUV struck a light pole, the staircase and its guardrails, and a pedestrian. The vehicle then came to a rest on Bluenose Dr.

The pedestrian who is a 52-year-old Halifax man and the driver a 78-year-old Lunenburg man sustained critical injuries and were taken to a local hospital before being transferred to Halifax via Lifeflight.

There was also a 72-year-old female riding as a passenger in the SUV but she did not sustain any major injuries.

Roads in the area were closed to traffic for a few hours following the incident, but have since reopened.

The Town of Lunenburg has said the staircase will remain closed indefinitely until it can be repaired, however, you can still get up and down on foot via the wheelchair ramp which was undamaged.