Five dead on roads; two during police pursuits

Five people are dead after crashes in the Tasman district overnight - two of which happened during police pursuits.

In the latest crash, three people died when their car hit a tree in Marsden Valley Road at Stoke, "directly outside the cemetery", Nelson Bays Area Commander Detective Inspector John Winter said.

A fourth person received non life-threatening injuries in the crash, which was discovered at 6.54am.

The three deceased were believed to be from Nelson, Mr Winter said.

It was the second car versus tree crash in the Nelson area overnight. The first was at 2.42am, when a Subaru WRX crashed on Four Rivers Highway at Murchison.

Two young men were in the car, which had been doing burnouts outside a hotel. Police chased the vehicle for about a minute, during which time speeds of up to 150km/h were reached, before it crashed.

The lone police officer in pursuit saw a dust cloud and trail of debris before seeing the crashed car, which had split in two when it hit a large gum tree.

"The two halves of the car lie 30m apart," Mr Winter said.

The passenger died and the driver was in a critical condition in Nelson Hospital.

He refused to say if charges were likely against the driver.

"Goodness me, that's a big leap - he's got to survive first," Mr Winter told NZPA.

The Murchison constable involved in the pursuit was "fine", he said.

At 11.47pm yesterday in Marlborough, a speeding motorcyclist carrying a passenger fled police, who believed he was drunk.

Police chased the motorcyclist along Waikawa Road for 40 seconds before he crashed. The male driver died at the scene and his female passenger was flown to Wellington Hospital, where she remains in a serious condition.

Both crashes involving police would be reported to the Independent Police Conduct Authority, which would investigate.

- NZPA