A man was flown to Hawke's Bay Hospital late on Thursday after the truck he was driving crashed between Wairoa and Raupunga in Hawke's Bay.
The southbound tractor-and-trailer unit overturned about 2.50pm in dry conditions on a left-hand hairpin State Highway 2 bend near Waihua.
Sources at the scene said the Gisborne truck and refrigerated container trailer partially blocked the highway but the road was closed because of oil across the rest of the lanes. The container appeared to remain intact.
A possible detour through Cricklewood was not available because the rural road was closed by a slip.
St John Ambulance and Wairoa Volunteer Fire crews worked to extract the driver from the truck before he was placed initially in an ambulance before being flown to hospital by rescue helicopter.
