Sedated in critical unit after crash in paddock

A MAN who may have been thrown from a car in a crash near Taihape is still in critical condition, his mother says.

"He's still in ICU, still critical," the woman said yesterday.

Her 23-year-old son was involved in an accident early on Monday when a car rolled off State Highway 1 into a paddock. He was found about 25 metres from the car, although it was not clear if he was thrown from the vehicle or not.

A woman who was also in the car had to be cut out. She was flown to Palmerston North Hospital while the man was driven by ambulance to Whanganui Hospital.

The mother said police told her to expect the worst when they came to her front door on Monday to tell her about the accident.

She said he had very serious injuries, including a brain bleed and broken bones, and had to be kept sedated because he was in too much pain.

The mother, who lives elsewhere, said she had been unable to make it to Whanganui to see her son as she could not afford it and her car was not warranted or registered at the moment.

"It breaks my heart," she said.

"I love him, and I'm really worried about him."