A woman was “lucky” to survive after she was involved in a head-on crash between a truck and a car in Tautoro south of Kaikohe yesterday.
The female driver had to be freed from her car following the crash on Mangakahia Rd shortly before 2pm.
Serious crash investigatorJeff Cramp said their investigations showed the crash occurred when the driver’s car drifted across the centre line for reasons still under investigation.
The force of the head-on impact was enough to damage and tear off the right-hand wheel of her vehicle.
“She is lucky to have survived it as she did,” Cramp said.
She was then taken to Bay of Islands Hospital in a serious condition,
The Advocate understands the impact of the crash caused the driver’s vehicle to land roughly 100m away from the truck.
The truck reportedly blocked both lanes of State Highway 15, especially after a tractor it was carrying fell off its trailer.
Northland Police Senior Sergeant Brian Swann said by evening, emergency services had cleared off the blockage using a heavy crane by 6pm and that the serious crash unit was investigating the matter.
Traffic was diverted via Piccadilly Rd, Mataraua Rd and State Highway 12.