A 2-year-old boy has been treated and discharged after a two-car crash on Desert Rd that left eight people injured.
His 38-year-old mother remains in a stable condition in Rotorua Hospital.
A man in his 70s and a woman in her 60s are also in Rotorua Hospital in a stable but serious condition following the crash, a Lakes District Health Board spokeswoman said.
All three adults had been transferred to Rotorua Hospital overnight, she said.
The discharged child will be kept with family members.
Three others are in Waikato Hospital.
Eight people needed medical help after the cars collided at about 3pm yesterday, 5km north of the Tree Trunk Gorge Rd intersection.
Emergency services including four rescue helicopters, three ambulances and a First Response unit were called to the scene.
On arrival, they found six people were in a serious condition.
A police spokeswoman said the Serious Crash Unit was investigating.
"This can take some time, so it's too early to comment on the cause of the crash," she said.