Carnage on north roads

Two killed, several injured in North Island crashes.

Two people died and several have been seriously injured on North Island roads since Friday morning.

A 54-year-old man is in a serious condition in Waikato Hospital after a "horrendous" crash at an accident blackspot south of Te Kuiti yesterday.

The man suffered serious injuries when his Holden collided with a BMW carrying four people on SH3 at the junction with SH4 at Te Mapara in Waitomo about midday.

Resident Matt Buckley said he saw the accident from his home about 500m away and said it was hard to believe everyone had survived.

"I looked out and saw a line of cars backed up and two cars in bits over the road. It didn't look too good. I saw lots of people running around. One car was smashed up and the other one barely looked like a car anymore. It was horrendous," he said.

Piopio fire chief Darren Cathie said the BMW was turning right from SH4 on to SH3 and collided with the Holden travelling south on SH3.

The 54-year-old male driver of the Holden and the two back-seat passengers of the BMW had to be cut from the cars.

"Three people had to be cut out of the wreckages. Two men had serious injuries and were airlifted to Waikato Hospital. One had leg, abdomen and hip injuries and the other had chest and pelvic injuries," he said.

Three people were taken by road to Waikato Hospital.

The two couples, all in their 50s, from the BMW were last night listed as stable in Waikato Hospital.

State Highway 3 was closed while the Police Serious Crash Unit examined the scene.

Elsewhere:

An 85-year-old retired farmer died when the quad bike he was riding collided with a vehicle on Friday afternoon. George Passey was an active man who still enjoyed hunting and fishing. Passey had stopped on his quad bike on Aranui Rd on the outskirts of Palmerston North while a south-bound car went by, but collided with a second car about 4.40pm on Friday, police said.

A 45-year-old Waihou motorcyclist was killed on Friday night at the intersection of Campbell Rd and SH26 in the Waikato. The man's motorcycle collided with a car at about 6.45pm as he travelled east on SH26. Police said he died at the scene.

A 48-year-old man was seriously injured when he lost control of his car yesterday morning on Pouto Rd, 60km southwest of Dargaville. The man and his 50-year-old male passenger had to be cut out of the Nissan Patrol stationwagon. Sergeant Maria Nordstrom of Dargaville police said the car rolled after the driver lost control on a bend in the windy metal road. The passenger suffered minor injuries.

A 26-year-old woman suffered severe head injuries when she was crushed by a truck's trailer at a Taupo service station early Friday morning. The woman walked between the truck and its trailer as it pulled out of the Mobil petrol station on Tongariro St. She remained in a critical condition last night.

- Herald on Sunday