Man hit by car in Guy Fawkes brawl

A brawl involving about 10 people broke out on Monday night after the party on 18th Avenue spiralled out of control.

A man was hit by a car and fence palings were used as weapons after a Guy Fawkes party in the Avenues erupted in violence.

The brawl involving about 10 people broke out on Monday night after the party on 18th Ave spiralled out of control.

Neighbours, who spoke on condition they were not named, have told the Bay of Plenty Times that the continuous boom of fireworks started about 8.30pm and continued for a couple of hours.

"It was like thunder and lightning and so loud.

"Some of the fireworks ended up shooting down the street and not into the sky," said one.

Another neighbour heard screaming and yelling about 11pm and said a big brawl erupted on the street.

"A car pulled up and people jumped out and there was this big punch up. They ripped batons off the fence to whack each other. It was frightening."

When the Bay of Plenty Times visited the street yesterday a fence at a nearby property had gaps where palings had once been.

One neighbour saw a car hit a man and thought the man was dead after he was "flipped" in the air and "straight on the ground".

"After about four minutes he got up and stumbled about.

"He looked like he had concussion anyway and wandered off down the road," they said.

"I heard he ended up in hospital."

Another neighbour said: "I heard all the commotion and went out there and the guy was laying on the road ... and he looked quite bad to start with. Then he got up looking a bit dazed, left his shoes and walked off up the street."

A person at the property concerned said they had just finished celebrating Guy Fawkes with their children when a group of people turned up - "and it went haywire".

"That is what they get when they come up to people's houses in their scarves and standover them. They came from another party and were drunk."

Tauranga CIB chief Detective Senior Sergeant Greg Turner said the person taken to Tauranga Hospital with minor injuries and later discharged was refusing to co-operate and the matter was no longer being investigated.

Greg Turner.

Police were called to the address at about 11.15pm following reports someone had been seriously hurt and run over after a street fight broke out with gate crashers.

About 10 people were involved in the altercation and the group that visited the address were well-known to Tauranga police, he said.

Mr Turner said although they "wear red bandannas on a regular basis" the incident did not appear to be gang related.