Two separate crashes on Waikato roads claim three lives

Monday, 9 October 2017

A car and truck crash on SH1 at Tamahere south of Hamilton was the first of the string of accidents from October 6 to 9 around the country.

Three people died in two crashes on the Waikato district's highways over the weekend.

Their deaths have taken the number killed from road crashes in the Waikato police's district this year to 31.

Two people died in a crash between two vehicles on a main highway through the King Country on Sunday afternoon.

Around 1.30pm, police were called to a two-car crash on State Highway 3 near Lees Block Rd, north of the Te Kuiti aerodrome.

St John ambulance confirmed two people died at the scene.

Two others were flown to Waikato Hospital with moderate injuries.

A resident who lives nearby said the crash occurred at the end of a passing lane between Te Kuiti and Hangatiki.

'There's a passing lane straight and apparently it was right down at the southern end of that straight - there's a left-hand bend,' the woman said.

A friend, who had been turned around at the crash scene, said at least two vehicles were involved.

'There are multiple fatalities because they have tarpaulins over the vehicles,' he told her.

'I couldn't actually identify any vehicles but there was a tarp over one and they were pulling out another tarp as I turned around,' he said to her.

She said it had been raining for most of the day.

Hearing of the crash brought back memories of a crash involving the woman's husband and son a few years ago. It happened on the highway not far from Sunday's crash.

'I've only heard the helicopters and a terrible sense of sickness in my stomach from the crash that my family had two years ago.'

Police shut down the highway, putting diversions in place on SH3 at SH37 (Waitomo Caves Rd) and at the intersection with Oparure Rd.

It was the second fatal crash of the weekend.

On Saturday, Hamilton man Jordan Bruce Young died after his BMW collided with a Linfox truck and trailer unit on the Waikato Expressway at Tamahere.

From initial scene examinations, Waikato police Senior Sergeant Mike Henwood said police believed the 20-year-old driver of the silver sedan crossed the centre line shortly before 3pm.

He was heading towards Cambridge when, for reasons yet to be determined, he left the southbound lane and travelled across the road just before the start of a grassed median strip.

'It appears the motor vehicle which contained the deceased crossed the centre line on State Highway 1 into the path of the oncoming truck in the northbound lane.'

Henwood said the 20 year old was the only person in the car. He died at the scene.

The driver of the Linfox truck walked free from the crash.

The collision happened 200 to 300 metres from the beginning of the roadworks area, which is a reduced speed zone.