Police wait for driver in fatal crash to come out of coma

A policeman examines the wreckage of Brian Kenley's vehicle after Tuesday's crash. Photo / Martin Sykes

The family of a man involved in a head-on collision that killed another driver are waiting for him to come out of a coma to talk about what happened.

Brian Kenley's family say the retired 62-year-old seldom left his home in Waiuku.

It may be a month before police decide whether any charges will be laid over the death of Donald Rex Heenan, 40, whose car and one driven by Mr Kenley collided in Awhitu Rd, about 3km from Waiuku, on Tuesday afternoon.

Sergeant Simon Palmer of Waiuku said early indications were that Mr Kenley's car had crossed the centre line on a left-hand bend.

Police had been unable to speak to Mr Kenley as he was still in a coma in hospital. Test results will take up to 10 days and toxicology results from the post-mortem examination on Mr Heenan may take a month, according to Mr Palmer.

"In three or four weeks we will be in a better position to say if there will be charges. At the moment it's too early to say."

Police were still to speak to a man and woman who were travelling in a car 100m behind Mr Heenan's white Toyota Corolla. "They were the only witnesses close enough to have seen what happened," Mr Palmer said.

A Middlemore spokeswoman said Mr Kenley was in the intensive care unit yesterday and his condition was critical.

Mr Kenley was heading towards the town while Mr Heenan, from Manurewa, was heading away.

A spokeswoman for Mr Kenley's two sons said he had surgery on his brain on Tuesday night and on broken bones yesterday.

She said he was in an induced coma and it might be three or four days before the family could speak to him. "He lived very quietly in Waiuku. He very seldom ventured out of the town ... We are unsure where he'd been, police don't know either."

Mr Kenley, who is English-born but grew up in Bulls, joined the Air Force at 15 and was later an engineer for the 40th Squadron at the Whenuapai base.

He moved to Waiuku about 15 years ago, where he worked for Air New Zealand in a training role. He retired about five years ago.

His sons live in Feilding.