A car slid 80m before smashing into two cars that had already crashed on a busy highway yesterday, leaving one passenger dead and three others injured.
The car was travelling south on State Highway 10 at Kerikeri when it hit two cars sprawled across the road outside the Kerikeri Farm Hostel. An 18-year-old German backpacker ran to the scene of the first accident and was distressed to witness the fatal crash, a hostel worker said.
One person died at the scene and Northland Rescue Helicopter took two teenage girls with serious injuries to Whangarei Hospital.
A 21-year-old male driver was taken to Bay of Islands Hospital with moderate injuries.
State Highway 10 near Kerikeri Junction Rd was closed for several hours while police examined the scene.
