Northern Advocate
  • Northern Advocate home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Sport
  • Property
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Sport
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings

Locations

  • Far North
  • Kaitaia
  • Kaikohe
  • Bay of Islands
  • Whangārei
  • Kaipara
  • Mangawhai
  • Dargaville

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Kaitaia
  • Whangārei
  • Dargaville

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Northern Advocate

Chilling near-miss near Opua turnoff on Northland road captured on cam

By Kristin Edge
Reporter·Northern Advocate·
1 Jan, 2019 01:07 AM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Dashcam captures a near-miss head on crash near Opua

Mike Chubb had only seconds to react to a car hurtling towards him on the wrong side of the road.

The manager of Whangārei Airport was travelling home after finishing some work on an aircraft in Paihia about 10am on Friday when he was faced with the car which had crossed double yellow lines and was coming at him.

The terrifying seconds and near-miss were captured on a dash cam Chubb had been given as a Father's Day present about four years ago.

Chubb had just gone past the Opua turnoff and was heading down a section of straight road when the oncoming car crossed the road.

"The next thing this car is roaring up the road on the wrong side. He showed no sign of slowing down so I hit the brakes ... all of a sudden at the last second he swung across in front of me."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The two cars almost collided but Chubb had slowed down.

Chubb let out a couple of expletives but continued driving, happy to not be a tragic addition to Northland's 2018 road toll which stands at 35.

"It all happened so quickly, it was a matter of seconds."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The chilling footage was downloaded on to his home computer but Chubb said he was unable to make out the car's registration plate number.

He was going to look at some software that would improve the quality and maybe allow him to make the footage clearer.

"It would be good if the police would knock on his door and get an explanation. I don't know what he was doing, whether he was distracted by a phone or radio I don't know."

The near-miss comes as a 34-year-old Onerahi man was left in a critical condition after crashing off a Harley Davidson motorbike on a suburban Whangārei street.

Discover more

Serious crash near Kaikohe lands seven people in hospital

04 Jan 05:00 AM
New Zealand

Is Baby Shark the answer to Northland's horror road toll?

03 Mar 10:30 PM

Emergency services received reports of the incident on Hodgson St, Onerahi about 9pm on Sunday.

St John medics carried out CPR on the man as he lay on the street before he was taken by ambulance to Whangārei Hospital and later flown by the Northland Rescue helicopter to Auckland Hospital where he remained in a critical condition.

Out on the region's major highways police were reporting increased traffic flows with too many drivers making impatient passing moves and failing to abide by speed restrictions.

Acting Sergeant Brett Steel, who had been out on the roads patrolling, said far too many drivers were impatient and making dangerous passing manoeuvres as a result.

He said while there was a 4km speed tolerance being enforced too many motorists were not heeding the warning to slow down.

"We are basically still getting the same speeds as normal."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

He made a plea for motorists to slow down, and plan their trips better so they allowed themselves half an hour longer for delays and rest stops.

"People are trying to get to their holiday destinations in Northland in one big hit. They are getting tired and making poor decisions."

One example was a driver who was trying to get from Wellington to the Bay of Islands without stopping for a break.

The vehicle came to the attention of Steel, who was patrolling just south of Whangārei, when he noticed it swerving over the road. He stopped it and made the driver rest for half an hour.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Northern Advocate

Northern Advocate

'I wouldn't wish it on anyone': Why are victims having to wait until 2027 for justice?

21 Jun 01:00 AM
Premium
Opinion

Opinion: Endless tourist tours are our modern purgatory

20 Jun 05:00 PM
Northern Advocate

Why kiwi deaths on roads highlight a conservation success story

20 Jun 02:00 AM

Jono and Ben brew up a tea-fuelled adventure in Sri Lanka

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Northern Advocate

'I wouldn't wish it on anyone': Why are victims having to wait until 2027 for justice?

'I wouldn't wish it on anyone': Why are victims having to wait until 2027 for justice?

21 Jun 01:00 AM

Nine homicide cases this year have added to the delays in the High Court at Whangārei.

Premium
Opinion: Endless tourist tours are our modern purgatory

Opinion: Endless tourist tours are our modern purgatory

20 Jun 05:00 PM
Why kiwi deaths on roads highlight a conservation success story

Why kiwi deaths on roads highlight a conservation success story

20 Jun 02:00 AM
Rewi Spraggon explains Puanga, Matariki’s older brother

Rewi Spraggon explains Puanga, Matariki’s older brother

19 Jun 10:00 PM
Help for those helping hardest-hit
sponsored

Help for those helping hardest-hit

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • The Northern Advocate e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Northern Advocate
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The Northern Advocate
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP