A 50-year-old woman was flown to Rotorua Hospital with serious injuries after a car crashed into a power pole yesterday at 5.45pm.
Police said two other occupants were unable to get out of the vehicle due to live electricity wires.
The crash was at State Highway 30 and 33, the main highway also known as the Whakatane turn-off, on the Rotorua side of the turn-off.
A St John Northern Communications spokesperson said three ambulances and a helicopter attended the scene.
The road was slowed to two lanes with traffic building up and moving past the location with a stop-go diversion before the the scene was cleared at 7.50pm.
