Kaimai Range crash: Emergency doctor tends to crash victim on road

A woman lying unconscious on the road after a serious crash in the Kaimai Range yesterday was assisted by a doctor who, by chance, was in the traffic queue.

Senior Sergeant Eddie Lyttle said a black Nissan with four women inside pulled out of the intersection from McLaren Falls Rd turning on to State Highway 29 toward Tauranga and collided with a Toyota ute heading in the opposite direction.

Emergency services at a serious crash in the Kamai Ranges.

The driver of the Nissan, believed to be in her 20s or 30s, is in a critical condition in Waikato Hospital, and three other women aged 24, 26 and 53 are being treated for moderate injuries in Tauranga Hospital following the collision about 3.15pm.

SH29 was closed for more than an hour while emergency services attended the crash scene at the corner of McLaren Falls Rd. The Waikato Hospital emergency department doctor, who was in the traffic queue, also assisted with dealing with the injured.

A group of five young men were in the car behind the Nissan. One of the men, who did not want to be named, said the Nissan slowed down as it came to the intersection, but he believed it did not stop.

The ute swerved to try to avoid the car but collided with it, he said.

The man said the passenger of the Nissan "flew" out of the front window and was lying unconscious on the road.

The driver was unconscious and two women in the back were awake, he said. "They had to cut the roof off to let the driver out. The two in the back were conscious but pretty shaken up. They were crying."

One of the women was airlifted to Waikato Hospital by the Westpac Rescue Helicopter where she remained in a critical condition in ICU last night.

The other women were reported to be in a stable condition.

Mr Lyttle said the ute driver "suffered only minor injuries and walked away relatively unscathed."

Police wish to thank members of the public who assisted with traffic control.additional reporting Sandra Conchie