Two people killed in Bankside crash named

Photo / File

Police have released the names of the two people who were killed in a motor vehicle crash at Bankside, south of Dunsandel, on Monday.

Gaurav Bhabhera, 28, an Indian tourist, was driving a car travelling south on State Highway 1 which was believed to have veered across the centre line into the path of a northbound vehicle, police said.

The crash killed him and Marae Judy Dean, 52, of Ashburton, the driver of the northbound vehicle.

Mr Bhabhera's wife, Jaina Bhabhera, remained in a critical condition in Christchurch Hospital's intensive care unit.

The female passenger in the northbound vehicle, a member of Ms Dean's family, was in a comfortable condition in hospital, police said.

Sergeant Chris Jones said police had been interviewing witnesses and an examination of the vehicles was expected to be completed by the end of this week.

Police were not speculating on the cause of the crash at this stage but investigations were looking at possible contributing factors including unfamiliarity with conditions and driver distraction.