Grim weekend toll as six die on the roads

Six people - five of them youngsters - have died in crashes on New Zealand roads this weekend.

A 24-year-old man and a 19-year-old woman were killed when a car carrying five people aged 17 to 24 crashed into a tree in Wanaka last night.

Sergeant Aaron Nicholson of Wanaka police a white Subaru WRX failed to take a tight bend on Mt Aspiring Road, and crashed into a large tree at 11pm.

Late on Friday night 15-year-old twin girls Shaan and Jasmine Tahere were killed when the car they were in slammed into a power pole in Auckland.

The twins were backseat passengers in the car that crashed on the city bound lane of the North-Western motorway at Mount Albert at about 11.30pm.

Yesterday morning an 18-year-old man died after his car left the road near Dannevirke and rolled down a bank.

Inspector Michael Coleman said the man had suffered serious head injuries and died at the scene.

Also yesterday an elderly man riding a motor bike in Gisborne was killed shortly after midday.

The victim, 64, lost control on a corner and crashed.

- NZPA