A missing Hawkes Bay man whose crashed car was found empty this afternoon - sparking a frantic search along the Napier-Taupo Rd - has been found trapped in blackberry bushes.
Aaron Vandenburg had fallen down a nearby bank and was found just after 8.30pm "entangled in blackberry bushes", police said.
The 23-year-old's blue Audi was discovered stuck in a fence with a flat tyre by his friends near the Te Haroto summit on State Highway 5 this afternoon, after he failed to return home from Rotorua last night.
Rescuers had to cut away the bushes to free him.
Mr Vandenburg did not appear to have any injuries and was taken to Hawke's Bay Hospital for observation.
