Two killed, one injured on roads

Two people are dead and a third is seriously injured after three crashes in 22 hours.

A 51-year-old man died after losing control of his ute on a bend in Morrinsville, Waikato, about 6pm on Friday.

The Toyota Hilux smashed through a bridge before travelling along a bank and falling 10m into the Piako River.

Emergency services recovered the vehicle but the man died at the scene.

A motorcyclist died when his bike and a car collided on State Highway 25A near Kopu, in the Thames-Coromandel region, about 3.40pm yesterday. No one in the car was injured.

A woman is in a stable condition in Waikato Hospital after surgery for injuries sustained when her car hit a tree at Arapuni, about 14km west of Putaruru, yesterday morning.