Northland news in brief: Crash victim recovering, Lotto win and more

Crash victim recovering

A Far North woman who suffered serious head injuries in a crash near Ōkaihau on Wednesday which killed the car's other occupant is recovering in Whangārei Hospital. The woman was well enough by Thursday morning to be transferred out of intensive care into a ward. Police have yet to release the name of the woman who died in the early-morning crash. She is believed to be in her 20s and from the Ōkaihau area. Neither was wearing a seat belt when the Nissan station wagon they were in left State Highway just south of Waiare Rd, dropped into a stream, struck the far bank and flipped. An investigation by the police Serious Crash Unit is continuing.

Temporary road

A temporary road is being built around Puketona Junction on State Highway 10 while work begins on a long-awaited roundabout. The felling of trees earlier this week between Junction Cafe and the bridge this week was to allow room for construction of the temporary bypass. Both lanes of SH10 traffic will shift eastwards with fresh line markings and a reduced 50km/h speed limit. Work is continuing to locate and move underground utilities such as stormwater pipes, power, fibre optic and telephone cables. The Puketona Junction roundabout is one of three in the Far North funded by the NZ Upgrade Programme. The others are at the intersection of SH1 and SH11 in Kawakawa and at the intersection of SH12 and Rawene Rd. Work is also underway on a roundabout on SH10 at Waipapa funded by the Provincial Growth Fund.

Lotto winner

A ticket sold in Northland was among 10 nationally that each won more than $36,000 with Lotto Second Division on Wednesday. The ticket, sold at Tony's Stationery & Lotto in Maungaturoto, won its holder $36,633. The winning Lotto numbers were 6, 21, 28, 36, 37, 40 and the bonus number 17. Powerball was not struck on Wednesday and will be worth $30 million on Saturday.

Police station reopens

The Kaitaia police station is open to the public again, but for a shorter day than before the Covid-19 lockdown. The public counter is now staffed from 10am to 4pm Monday to Friday. Senior Sergeant Russell Richards said the new non-urgent phone line (105) and digital platforms had reduced public demand for personal attention. "I appreciate that some people will be finding it hard to adapt to the new technology, and if they want to talk to someone face to face they are still very welcome to do so," he said. The reduced hours were enabling staff to make more productive use of their time at each end of the day.

One new Covid case

There was one new case of Covid-19 reported in managed isolation in New Zealand yesterday. It has now been 90 days since the last case of Covid-19 was acquired locally from an unknown source. There are no recovered cases to report, meaning the number of active cases in New Zealand is 24. NZ's total number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 is now 1210.