Crashes keep services busy

Emergency crews work to to remove this car which went into a ditch on Tukituki Rd near Haumoana. Photo / Paul Taylor

Emergency services were kept busy yesterday attending four separate accidents within short succession and eight road incidents in total around the Bay.

Crews were first called to an incident at 1.20pm after a stock truck rolled on Puketitiri Rd near Rissington.

There were no injuries but the road was closed while stock was cleared.

Emergency crews attended the scene for about three hours before both lanes were reopened. Animal Control were also called to the scene.

Then shortly after 1.30pm a woman on Farndon Rd hit a power pole. The woman suffered minor injuries as a result.

About five minutes later a car crashed into a ditch on Tukituki Rd in Haumoana. A crane was required to remove the car.

Just 10 minutes later at about 1.45pm a car hit a lamp post on the corner of Nuffield Ave and Kennedy Rd near the Marewa shops. The post came down, causing minor traffic delays but there were no injuries as a result.

Another incident occurred on the Napier-Taupo Rd where a van crashed into a bank.

The final crash reported happened just before 5pm. Four cars collided nose to tail on the Hawke's Bay Expressway near the intersection with Links Rd.

A police spokeswoman said a number of the accidents were caused by weather and inattentive driving.

She said that the roads were slippery and drivers needed to take care, especially on rural roads and highways.

Though the rain may be causing havoc on the roads, it is a refreshing sight for some.

Federated Farmers provincial president Will Foley said the recent rain had been welcomed by farmers in the region.

"The past couple of days up to that point were getting pretty dry."

He hoped the rain would help to produce some "significant grass growth" before winter kicked in with the cooler temperatures.

MetService meteorologist Lisa Murray said there would be scattered showers about today but they would become confined to the ranges later in the afternoon. She said both Napier and Hastings would experience a clearer afternoon with light north-easterly winds.

Ms Murray said temperatures would climb to a high of 22C in Hastings today and one degree higher in Napier with 23C expected. Overnight temperatures are expected to go down to 16C in Napier and 15C in Hastings.

A ridge of high pressure to the east of the South Island will move eastward further out into the Pacific which will give New Zealand a northerly wind flow sheltering Hawke's Bay. After a couple of colder days earlier in the week people will be eased back into the warm weather Hawke's Bay has had a taste of during summer with today's warmer conditions hotting up even more on Saturday and Sunday with temperatures in the mid-20s expected.