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Police say speeding through roadworks played a big part in a fatal car crash over the weekend.
The crash came after a police clampdown on speeding through roadworks on the northern end of State Highway 2 near Athenree, 14km southeast from Waihi, last week.
Eastern Waikato Police Area Commander Inspector Glenn Dunbier said officers had received a number of complaints from roading contractors.
"On Friday we saw the effects of what not driving to the conditions can do with the avoidable loss of one person's life," he said.
Bruce McPherson, 21, of Katikati, died when the car in which he was a back-seat passenger in lost control going through roadworks and collided with a bank.
Mr Dunbier said the car lost control on a straight piece of road that had a speed restriction of 30km/h on it because of roadworks.
The female driver of the car and a male front seat passenger were both taken to Tauranga Hospital.
The Waikato Serious Crash Unit are investigating the crash.
The death was one of three reported over the weekend.
On Saturday afternoon a man died when his vehicle collided with a truck and trailer unit at Richmond, near Nelson.
Paul James Melville, 40, was towing a trailer along the Appleby Highway when his car crossed the centre line.
Sergeant Blair Hall said the crash happened 200 metres west of the Pugh Road intersection at around 2.20pm.
Police were investigating the incident but a result would be several weeks away, he said.
Mr Melville was survived by his wife and two daughters.
Early yesterday morning an 18-year-old woman died when her vehicle left the road and collided with several trees at Te Teko, in Whakatane.
Constable Michael Chelley said the crash on State Highway 30 happened around 7.30am.
Inquiries into the cause of the crash were continuing and the woman's name would not be released until her family had been contacted.
- NZPA
