Motorcyclist dies after Puketapu crash in Hawke's Bay, plus man airlifted after Waipukurau crash

The Lowe Corporation rescue helicopter prepares to take off from downtown Waipukurau.

A man died after a motorcycle crash west of Napier on Saturday night.

The man, aged in his late 50s, crashed on Puketapu Rd, between Springfield and Dartmoor roads, just before 6pm, police said.

No other vehicle was thought to have been involved.

According to Ministry of Transport online statistics it was the 14th fatality this year on roads from the Wairoa District in the north to the Tararua District in the south, one less than the 2018 toll to the end of the first week in September.

It was the second motorcycle fatality in the Hawke's Bay region this year.

Police had not released further details by mid-morning yesterday.

Meanwhile, a man was understood to have been flown to Hawke's Bay Hospital after being struck by a van as he ran across Herbert St, Waipukurau, about midday on Saturday.

The incident happened at the intersection of Herbert (SH2) and Russell Sts, where the Lowe Corporation Hawke's Bay Rescue Helicopter landed after flying from its base at the hospital in Hastings.

It has been a busy weekend for emergency services in the lower North Island.

An hour after the Puketapu crash, seven people were hurt - three badly - when their vehicle crashed on a notorious stretch of State Highway 3 in Manawatu.

Police said they were called to the single-vehicle crash on Rangitikei Line in Newbury at about 7.10pm.

A St John spokeswoman said three people were taken to Palmerston North Hospital with serious injuries and two with moderate injuries.

Two other patients had minor injuries and were treated at the scene.

Four ambulances and a manager vehicle attended the incident.