Teen injured in crash on 'notorious' bend

Firefighters and paramedics work at the scene. Photo / Diana Wright

A teenager was critically injured and had to be cut from his car after a crash left it wrapped around a tree on what locals called a "notorious bend" in Mount Maunganui about 4am yesterday.

Oceanbeach Rd residents were woken in the early hours by the sound of two large crashes - first when his car hit a parked car and seconds later when it hit a tree just metres from a house.

A teenager is in a critical condition after his car (right) hit a parked car (left) and a tree yesterday morning.

A local resident on the scene said the parked car was pushed into the middle of the road by the impact and the teenager's car was left "wrapped around the tree".

The 19-year-old remained in a critical condition in Waikato Hospital's Intensive Care Unit last night.

Longtime residents were not surprised to see another crash on what they called a notorious bend between Concord Ave and Golf Rd.

Hannah Taylor and her fiance jumped straight out of bed when they heard the impact of the car hitting the large tree on their front lawn.

The bend on Oceanbeach Rd where a teenager hit a parked car and tree (centre). Photo / Rebeccxa Savory

Within moments, several neighbours had run from their houses to check on the driver, who appeared to be unconscious and very pale, she said.

Miss Taylor ran inside to call 111 while other neighbours attended to the driver.

The couple had only been in their rental home for two weeks but had heard from neighbours it was a notorious corner for crashes and had parked their car off the road as a precaution.

Next door, Keith Smith recognised the smashing sound as soon as he heard it.

"This has happened so many times on this corner."

Neighbours would rush to each crash and say "another one" to each other, he said.

"But we haven't had people seriously injured like this before."

In the 12 years he and his wife had lived in their home, he believed there had been at least six similar crashes on the corner.

The parked car that was hit was being rented by their tenants - which was not a first either.

"This is our second tenants' car that's been hit," Mr Smtih said.

The car was towed and luckily was insured by the rental company, the tenant said.

Mr Smith said his biggest concern was for the driver's safety. Mr Smith tried to get him out of the car when he mistakenly thought he saw smoke coming from the bonnet.

"We couldn't even open the doors. He was wedged in there."

One house along, Matthew Wallace and Linda Wright also woke to the sound of the crash.

"We went out there and his car was wrapped around the tree," Mr Wallace said.

"The parked car was in the middle of the road."

They were aware of at least four crashes on the same corner in the past eight years.

One car went through their neighbours' fence, another took out a power pole across the road and a number of cars parked on the side of the road had been hit, Miss Wright said.

Longtime residents knew not to park on the road because of the number of crashes, she said.

Ocean Beach Rd was closed from Golf Rd to Concord Ave while the driver was cut from the car and the police serious crash unit investigated.

The driver was taken to Tauranga Hospital before being flown to Waikato Hospital.