Auckland's Northern Motorway closed on Thursday afternoon due to a crash where at least one person has been critically injured.
A woman driving to pick up her children from kindergarten saw two cars in front of her fly through the air and roll down a hill in a crash on Auckland’s Northern Motorway that injured six people today.
The multi-car crash onState Highway 1 near Dairy Flat happened around 2pm and caused mass delays for northbound traffic.
The witness said she subsequently saw a man dragging his child from the back seat of the wreckage.
Emergency services closed the northbound lanes between Oteha Valley Rd and Dairy Flat Highway, reopening about five hours later.
Six people were injured in the crash and were taken to Auckland City and North Shore Hospitals. Four people were seriously injured, one had moderate injuries and another had minor injuries.
Five ambulances were on the scene, along with two rapid response vehicles and two Hato Hone St John operations managers.
The New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) said an official detour route was established on Dairy Flat Highway. Motorists also used East Coast Rd as an alternative route north, with traffic bumper-to-bumper on both these roads.
In tears, the witness described the scene: “As I came around the curve, I just saw these cars in the air. One was literally up in the air and the other was already rolling down the bank.
“And as I drove past I saw one guy, he was pulling his kid out of the back seat of the car. I just feel really bad for that family.
“[The cars] were wrecked. One was upside down, the other rolled back the right way,” she said.
“I’ve never seen a car crash before and there were people there that were so shocked.”
Traffic data from Google shows that there was a 4km backlog after a crash on Auckland's Northern Motorway near Dairy Flat. Photo / Google
Auckland's Northern Motorway was closed after a crash on Thursday.
Another passing motorist said she first knew something was wrong ahead when emergency services went rushing past her.
“As I drew closer to the accident site, you could see one vehicle had sent another onto its roof and had spun around.
“The back end of one car was up against the vehicle on its roof, and a short distance away was another vehicle that had been smashed both nose and tail end.
“I’ve never seen anything like this.”
Northbound lanes on Auckland's Northern Motorway are closed and traffic is being detoured.
UPDATE - 2:50PM This section of #SH1 between Oteha Valley Rd and Silverdale remains CLOSED. Allow extra time for the detour and expect long delays. More: https://t.co/L0qejIhPGW ^HJ https://t.co/RKQzDHOhhZ
— NZ Transport Agency - Auckland & Northland (@nztaaklnth) July 11, 2024
A fourth witness told the Herald he saw three “badly damaged cars, two of which looked like they had rolled”.
A fifth witness said he drove past the crash site southbound and could see about a dozen emergency service vehicles at the scene, including a rescue helicopter.
Police first received calls to the crash at 2.05pm and heard initial reports of critical injuries, however those were downgraded after paramedics assessed those involved.
Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.
