State Highway 2 at Te Hauke was closed for two hours on Saturday after a two-car pile-up that killed an 87-year-old man. Rutene Charles Soloman, who lived in the Te Hauke area, died in Hawke's Bay Hospital on Saturday afternoon following the accident at the intersection of Te Aute Trust Roadand State Highway 2, 20km south of Hastings. Police said Mr Soloman's Honda Civic pulled out into the path of a south-bound car just after 3pm, and was struck on the driver's side. Mr Soloman, the sole occupant, was cut out of his vehicle by emergency services, after being trapped for around half an hour. He was flown to hospital by the Lowe Corporation rescue helicopter, but died soon after. The driver of the other car, a Waipawa man, received minor injuries. The accident occured in a 100km/hr zone, and the highway was closed for two hours while emergency services cleared the scene. Hastings Police Senior Sergeant Greg Brown said no charges were expected to be laid. Police had almost completed their investigations and it would be referred to the coroner. * Police were called to an incident on Grove Road, Hastings, when a seven-year-old boy was struck by a car. The boy received bruising and was taken to hospital for X-rays after he tried to run across the road to his father. A car travelling up the road was unable to stop in time, and struck the boy. The driver, a 34-year-old Hastings man is to appear in court on a charge of drink driving, but no other charges were expected to be laid. At the time of the accident, several of the boy's family were gathered at a Grove Road address for a family function. In a similar incident, a six-year-old boy received minor injuries when he rode his bicycle out in front of a car on State Highway 2 at Waipawa, near the town's BP petrol station, about 5pm last night. The boy was struck by the car, and taken to Hawke's Bay Hospital for treatment.
