Firefighters cut occupants free from wreckage after car hits concrete wall

Wednesday, 29 August 2018

The police Serious Crash Unit is returning to Taranaki for the second time in two days after a car slammed into a concrete wall, leaving four people in intensive care.

The three men and one woman are all at Taranaki Base Hospital.

A hospital spokeswoman said a 22-year-old male and 16-year-old male are in a critical condition, while a 17-year-old female and 17-year-old male are in a stable condition.  

Emergency services, police, fire and ambulance staff, were called to the intersection of Devon St East and Nobs Line, New Plymouth, about 1.30am on Wednesday.

READ MORE: Woman killed, man arrested after fatal two-car crash north of New Plymouth

Senior station officer Jason Crowe said firefighters had to cut the doors off the car to free those trapped inside and were at the scene for about an hour.

Police spray-paint marks appear to indicate the car crashed into a traffic island first then crossed the road, knocking over a six-metre section of a solid concrete fence.

Large gouges have been taken out of the footpath and debris from the crash was still at the scene at 10am.

Sergeant Bruce Irvine said the SCU, from Palmerston North, would return and assess the scene with the goal of establishing how fast the vehicle was travelling at the time of the impact.

The SCU was in Taranaki on Tuesday after a fatal crash near Waitara, north of New Plymouth.