Police have named the person who died in a fatal crash on State Highway 52 on Saturday as David Jefferey Thomas
The 46-year-old, from Tauranga, was killed when the car he was in crashed near Dannevirke shortly after midnight.
Two other people were hurt in the smash, one critically.
Poor weather stopped the helicopter from landing at the accident site, instead landing at the nearby township of Pongaroa, a Philips Search and Rescue Trust spokeswoman said.
One patient had life-threatening injuries and had to be stabilised by St John paramedics at the scene before being taken to the helicopter and then flown to Palmerston North Hospital.
