Australian still critical after quad bike accident

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An Australian woman remains in a critical condition after a quadbike accident only days after her arrival in New Zealand.

Chelsea Callaghan, 38, of Melbourne, crashed a quadbike during a farm tour at Te Kohanga, between Taukau and Port Waikato, on Thursday afternoon.

She continues to fight for her life since the crash only a few days into her stay in the country.

This morning she was in a critical condition in Auckland City Hospital, a spokeswoman said.

It took at least two hours for Ms Callaghan to be taken to hospital after she was found unconscious by other members of her tour group.

The Westpac Rescue Helicopter struggled to find somewhere to land in the steep terrain near where Ms Callaghan crashed and an on-board medic had to intubate her before she was flown to Auckland.

Ms Callaghan, who was wearing a helmet, suffered a serious head injury and was in an induced coma at hospital.

Ms Callaghan was the victim of the second serious quadbike accident last week after 10-year-old Sam White was killed at a farm in Wairarapa a day earlier.

It was the third quadbike death this year and prompted calls for a review of safety regulations.

Chief Coroner Neil MacLean said at the time that safety messages around the use of quadbikes could go a long way to preventing utterly unnecessary deaths.