Teen driver in fatal RSE work van crash discharged from hospital after seven weeks

A van of holidaying workers collided fatally with a truck on State Highway 5 in October. Photo / Paul Taylor

The teenage driver of a van of holidaying workers that collided fatally with a truck in Hawke's Bay seven weeks ago has been discharged from hospital.

Emergency services were called to the two-vehicle crash on State Highway 5, between Tataraakina Rd and Pohukura Rd, on October 19.

Ten men, including the driver, were taken and then discharged from hospitals across the North Island after the crash, while an 11th man, Tino Tagiilima, was pronounced dead at the scene.

A Hawke's Bay District Health Board spokeswoman said 19-year-old driver, who sustained what had been life-threatening injuries, was discharged from Hawke's Bay Hospital on Monday.

The man spent a number of weeks in intensive care at Wellington Hospital.

Police said the investigation into the circumstances of the crash is ongoing.

No charges had been laid as at early December, a police spokeswoman said.

Almost two months after a van collided with a truck on SH5 near Tarawera, the teenaged driver has been discharged from hospital. Photo / Paul Taylor

Following the crash, Hawke's Bay Police senior constable and serious crash analyst Tim Rowe said it appeared to have been caused by a "momentary lapse in concentration".

A total of 23 people have died on Hawke's Bay roads in 2020 – the highest death toll in the previous five years.

The van of Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) workers and one New Zealander, one of a convoy of three, was travelling north to Taupo for a two-day holiday.

Thornhill Horticultural Contracting managing director Richard Bibby said Tino Tagiilima, who died at the scene had been a "hugely respected part of our Samoan team".