- 5 folks died in a head-on collision on State Freeway 3 in Ōhaupō.
- ‘Heartbreaking’: Waipā Mayor expresses deep sorrow, thanks emergency responders.
- Investigation in early phases, police don’t consider environmental components performed main function.
By Niva Chittock of RNZ
It has been a tricky evening for the district following a multi-fatality crash on Waikato’s State Freeway 3, Waipā mayor Susan O’Regan says.
Two automobiles crashed head-on, killing all 5 occupants on the scene in Ōhaupō, north of Te Awamutu, about 4.44pm on Tuesday.
Three folks had been in a single car, and two within the different.
O’Regan mentioned her first response, like many locally, was to examine if it was her household caught up within the crash.
“The heartbreaking half is that there will likely be a lot of folks, probably in our district – I’m undecided the place these folks resided, however definitely there will likely be households that will likely be coming into a very insufferable interval of ache proper now.”
O’Regan had affirmation on Tuesday evening that no Waipā council employees had been concerned within the crash, however that paled compared to the massive image.
The crash website would have been horrendous for these first on the scene and emergency companies had performed an incredible job of responding to the “grim” circumstances, she mentioned.
“I simply wish to thank them for his or her service and for the individuals who got here throughout this explicit accident, the primary folks on the scene … those that didn’t invite [themselves] to be in that state of affairs. I wish to say on behalf of the group, thanks for performing promptly and doing the best factor.”
The street the place the crash occurred was a busy, most important arterial route, that she thought was moderately secure.
O’Regan advised Newstalk ZB the crash’s influence was “troublesome to place into phrases”.
“It’s simply gut-wrenching,” O’Regan mentioned.
“All people’s linked, everyone will likely be impacted.”
She mentioned the stretch of street had a “excessive quantity” however was not a scorching spot for crashes.
Te Awamutu-Kihikihi Ward councillor Lou Brown mentioned the Waipā group had been rocked by two deadly crashes there in lower than per week.
Former Waipā councillor James Charles Parlane died additional up the identical stretch of street in a two-vehicle crash on Friday.
Brown believed Tuesday’s crash could have occurred the place two lanes merged into one.
“What we’re speaking about right here is there was supposedly a head-on crash, which surprises me extremely. It’s a straightforward piece of street. There’s no tight corners, no blindspots as I’ve come to grasp it,” he mentioned.
He commonly drove on the route and had been scratching his head as to how two horrific accidents may have occurred there.
“It’s fairly an open piece of street, with twin carriageways stepping into each instructions [in places]. So it’s fairly uncommon to think about anyone coming to grief there,” Brown mentioned.
Police didn’t take into account the stretch of street the place the crash occurred to be a high-risk space, Waikato street policing supervisor inspector Jeff Penno mentioned.
Whereas the police investigation into the crash was solely within the early phases, the preliminary indication was that environmental components didn’t seem like main contributors to the crash, he mentioned.
“There’s a massive scene we have to work by way of and our precedence in the meanwhile is knowing what has occurred to trigger this tragedy,” Penno mentioned.
He mentioned police had been additionally offering help to those that wanted it.
– RNZ
