One man survived with minor injuries only.
Crew aboard the Lowe Corporation Rescue Helicopter were the first to spot the 44-year-old lone survivor of a crash that killed three Mongrel Mob members on SH5.
The man was seen on a river bank near the vehicle that plunged 150 metres down a bank on Saturday. He was airlifted to a St John Ambulance and taken to Wairoa Hospital with moderate injuries and was later discharged.
Terry Shane Stone, 31, Ronald Rangi Rigby, 53, and Nathan Isaac, 29, died at the scene.
The men, all from Wairoa, were on their way to the mob's Hastings chapter 50th anniversary reunion, which included visits to gravesites of other members who have died over the years.
The men, all from Wairoa, were on their way to the mob's Hastings chapter 50th anniversary reunion, which included visits to gravesites of other members who have died over the years.
A small team of emergency service workers stood with a sole police officer on a narrow cliff edge along State Highway 2 yesterday. The men's white Honda was smashed and sitting in the Mohaka River below. The highest viaduct in Australasia loomed ahead, a sinister reminder of just how steep the cliff dropped.
A crane was unable to reach the car on Sunday.
Flotation devices were popping out of the car windows, when Hawke's Bay Today arrived on the scene.
The first plan to remove the vehicle by floating it downstream failed.
The car had already floated around 150 metres as planned, but became beached in a shallow section of the river.
Four motorcyclists wearing leathers pulled up to peer down the steep drop.
Puffing on cigars and sporting black bandannas, these men were a group of Harley Davidson motorcyclists.
They had stopped in to peer over the cliff edge.
Car loads of Mongrel Mob members soon began to drift in. They spilled out on to the windy section of state highway before crowding at the cliff edge.
Hi-vis vests were spliced with red bandannas and mongrel mob insignia. Arms on shoulders, young children, elderly cradled, one woman wailed, "My brother, my brother".
An Air Force helicopter was used to try to retrieve the crashed car from the river.
At 2.30pm a NH90 helicopter lowered three divers into the river.
They tied strops to the car before the chopper returned at 4 pm to retrieve the car.
Water streamed out from beneath the vehicle as it was lifted up from the river bed and taken to the paddock across the road.
The car was taken to Gisborne for forensic examination.
Nearby in Raupunga, the crash and the aftermath have raised considerable fears in the township.
A Raupunga resident yesterday told Hawke's Bay Today that if a local person was involved in the crash in any way or had information to help the police investigation they should contact the police.
"It's devastating," one said. "It makes me sick to think. We've got to think of the dead and their families."
The resident was also frightened about what was happening, including the possible impact on the township, and wanted police to patrol the area.
Raupunga is home to a small number of younger people who were members of historic mob rivals Black Power.
Back at the scene, markings spray painted on the road traced the car's movements.
The steal barrier that shielded cars from the steep drop buckled only slightly. Tufts of grass ripped from their roots, dirt scuffed and a gorse bush flattened.
Mr Greville would not confirm who he thought the driver of the blue car was.
It was suspicions only that led police to believe the other car was affiliated with Black Power.
Mr Greville said there was a chance Black Power members in Raupunga may have known Mongrel Mob members were making their way to Hawke's Bay for the 50th anniversary on Saturday. However, it was not something he was aware of.
When asked if this crash may cause retaliation between the rival gangs Mr Greville said: "There's been nothing specific that has made us have major concerns.
"We've had no indication to us that that is a problem."
Police had spoken to the person who survived the crash, however they had not formally interviewed him yet.
An autopsy was undertaken on the three dead men yesterday.
