Crash victim not wearing seatbelt

A South Auckland man killed in a crash near Cambridge yesterday was suffering from fatigue and was not wearing a seatbelt, police say.

It appeared the 35-year-old van driver failed to negotiate a slight bend on State Highway 1 at Karapiro about 4.15pm, clipped an oncoming car and collided head-on with a ute, Waikato road policing manager Inspector Leo Tooman said.

The man was not wearing a seatbelt and he was thrown from the van as it rolled.

The van burst into flames and members of the public dragged him away, but he died at the scene a short time later.

Four people travelling in the ute car suffered minor to moderate injuries and were taken to Waikato Hospital by ambulance.

The three people travelling in the car were shaken but unhurt.

SH1 was closed for about two hours while Serious Crash Unit investigators carried out a scene examination.

The dead man's name was expected to be released this afternoon.

- NZPA