The injured woman was found on Charlemont St, Hamilton, and was hospitalised in a critical condition.
A Hamilton man helped hold a critically injured woman's head up as a friend drove them to hospital after an incident on a city street.
Exactly why a 24-year-old was found without any major visible injuries on Charleton St about 8pm yesterday is yet to be confirmed by police, but a local resident believes she likely suffered a head injury after possibly being hit by a car.
The police serious crash unit was at the scene today, mapping out an area of the road that had been cordoned off by detectives.
Ryan Mirfin is a resident in the block of flats where it's believed the woman had earlier been drinking with her partner and his family.
Mirfin, 24, said he and a friend were watching a movie when they heard a commotion outside.
He looked out the window to see a group of people on the road.
"We kind of heard someone shouting about calling an ambulance and ran out there and my friend just took charge. She was really good in the situation. She's done first aid training."
A man who the injured woman had been drinking with was also there. After considering what to do - the man didn't want an ambulance called - they decided to drive the woman to hospital themselves.
"We loaded the girl into my mate's car and from there I kind of sat in the back seat and held her head straight and managed to get a weak pulse while we were driving to the hospital."
Mirfin said he understood both the woman and the man were from out of town.
"He was pretty drunk himself, to be honest. I think he thought that she was just drunk."
The woman didn't have any visible injuries, he said.
As for what happened, it was unclear, but they'd understood that the woman may have suffered a head injury as another person was moving their car. It didn't appear any malice was involved, he said.
She had either suffered the injury from the car itself or from landing on the road.
"She had few scrapes on her knees but seemed okay. To me, she just seemed to be showing all the signs of being drunk.
"From the sounds of things she may have walked into a car ... I don't think it was too malicious but I didn't see anything. By the time I saw her they had moved her onto the kerb."
Once at the hospital, the man the injured woman had been drinking with helped a nurse lift her into a wheelchair before she was wheeled inside.
She remains in a critical condition in Waikato Hospital, police said this afternoon.
Nobody was home at the flat where the woman had been drinking, when the Herald visited this afternoon. Other residents weren't home at the time the incident occurred.
Another neighbour said they popped home about 8pm briefly but didn't see anything untoward.
Police are now calling for witnesses who were in the area between 7pm and 8pm to find out what happened.
Anyone who was in the Charlemont St area between 7-8pm last night is urged to phone Hamilton Central Police Station on 07 858 6200.
Information can also be shared anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
