Five die on roads at weekend

Five people died in road crashes from Southland to the far North at the weekend.

A two-vehicle crash yesterday on State Highway 1 near Longbush, 13km east of Invercargill, killed a 19-year-old male passenger travelling in the rear of a Mazda car, Invercargill police said.

The teenager died at the scene of the crash. Police said his name would be released later today.

One other man and two women also in the Mazda were taken to Southland Hospital with injuries. One of them had to be cut from the car.

The crash happened at 4.57pm when the Mazda collided with a Mitsubishi vehicle, whose driver and sole occupant, an Invercargill man, was taken to Southland Hospital and discharged a short time later.

Minutes later a Waimate man, 48, died and two other men were injured after a head-on car crash on SH1 north of Oamaru.

The crash happened about 5.15pm on the Waihao Bridge.

Sergeant Mike van der Heyden of Waimate police said a south-bound vehicle had crossed the centre line and hit the north-bound car being driven by the Waimate man who died.

The 25-year-old male driver of the south-bound car and his male passenger, both believed to be from Dunedin, were taken by ambulance to Timaru Hospital. Their injuries were unknown.

Last night one person died and two others were critically injured when a car carrying six people crashed into a power pole in central Auckland.

A police statement said the crash happened at about 10.50pm on Quay Street, when the driver of a Honda attempted to overtake a bus.

Auckland police said more details would be available later this morning.

Meanwhile, on Saturday morning, Anne Elizabeth Fleming, 61, of Hamilton, the sole occupant of a car died in a collision with another car at the intersection of State Highways 26 and 1b at Eureka in Waikato.

The driver of the other car was unhurt.

Later on Saturday Alice Ida Evans, 93, from Kaitaia, died in Kaitaia Hospital after the Toyota vehicle in which she was a front seat passenger and a Honda motorcycle collided on SH10 at Awanui about 5.45pm.

The driver and passenger on the motorcycle were taken to Kaitaia Hospital with serious injuries.

The motorcycle had been travelling in the opposite direction and had crossed the centre line, police said.

The Ministry of Transport said today the official road toll stood at 58 for the year, compared with 66 at the same time last year.

- NZPA