Four of the seven people taken to Hawke's Bay Hospital after a head-on collision on Waimarama Rd on Saturday remain in a stable condition.
A van, believed to be carrying German visitors travelling towards Hastings, collided with a car near the corner of Waimarama and Ocean Beach Rds at 7.10pm after the van veered to the wrong side of the road.
Nearby resident Waikau Akonga was first on the scene and said several injured but conscious people were lying on the road.
They were soon surrounded by about 100 onlookers as heavy traffic returning from Waimarama and Ocean beaches ground to a halt.
Two rescue helicopters and three ambulances ferried the injured to hospital.