“One patient in a serious condition is being airlifted to Waikato Hospital.”
Police said the road was blocked and traffic management was in place, with diversions at Harbour Rd east side and Te Rauamoa Rd, westbound.
“Motorists are asked to please avoid the area and expect delays.”
NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi said SH31 was closed between Ngutunui Rd and Okupata Rd intersections.
It comes after a fatal crash on SH25 between Thames and Coromandel this morning, taking the Christmas-New Year holiday road toll to four.
Four others sustained minor injuries in the two-vehicle crash, reported shortly before 9am.
Police have asked motorists to avoid travelling on SH25a Coromandel Peninsula for the next few hours, with a 90-minute delay along the route.
The official holiday road toll period began on December 24 and runs until 6am on January 3.
On Christmas Eve, a motorcyclist died in a crash involving a car in Parkvale, Tauranga. Later that evening, shortly after 10pm, another person died at the scene of a single-vehicle crash in Pah Hill Rd in the Auckland suburb of Wharehine. On Boxing Day, a third fatality occurred, on SH35 near Te Araroa.
Over the Christmas period last year, 21 people died on New Zealand’s roads, said police in a statement.
“Road safety partners aim not to have a repeat of that figure this year.”
