Janina Pascoe and Matiu Whatarau victims of fatal Hawke's Bay crash

Police attend the scene of a fatal crash on Sandy Rd, Meeanee, Napier. Photo / Hawke's Bay Today

The two people killed in a car crash in Hawke's Bay on Thursday can now be named.

They were 31-year-old Janina Pascoe of Napier and 17-year-old Matiu Whatarau of Hastings, police said.

The Serious Crash Unit is investigating the cause of the crash, which happened on Sandy Rd, Meeanee about 4.35pm.

A third passenger who was travelling with Pascoe and Whatarau on Thursday had serious injuries.

There were two occupants in the second vehicle. The man had minor injuries and a woman was uninjured.

A witness at the scene compared the vehicles to "crumpled tin cans". ​