Cyclone Gabrielle: Woman badly injured after tree topples onto car near Taupō during cyclone

A woman was injured near Taupō.

A woman is in Middlemore Hospital in critical condition after a tree toppled onto her car on Wairakei Drive, just north of Taupō early on Tuesday morning.

A Hato Hone St John spokesperson said they received a call at 1.14am on February 14 about the incident and responded with one ambulance and one rapid response vehicle.

“Three patients were taken to Taupō Hospital – one in critical condition via ambulance; two in minor condition via rapid response vehicle.”

Senior sergeant Andy Livingstone, the area response manager for Taupō and Tūrangi said the tree came down on the woman’s car as she was driving to Wairakei, at a time when the cyclone was reaching its peak in the area.

He said it was a difficult situation for emergency services, with “trees coming down all over the place”.

The woman was taken to Taupō Hospital and Taupō-based Greenlea Rescue Helicopter confirmed it had later transferred a woman in her 20s who had sustained serious spinal injuries, to Waikato Hospital for further treatment.

“Later that afternoon, the patient was then transported from Waikato Hospital by the Waikato Westpac Rescue Helicopter to Middlemore Hospital for further treatment,” a Greenlea spokesperson said.

There has been extensive damage along Wairakei Drive and it remained closed until mid afternoon on February 16 while crews removed trees from the road.