KEY POINTS:
A man died early this morning when his four-wheel drive vehicle crossed the centreline and rolled into a drain on a rural Waikato road.
The death takes the toll for the Christmas holiday to six.
The 41-year-old man was killed instantly in the crash, which happened about 3.30am on Te Hoe Rd east of Huntly, police said.
He was the only person in the Isuzu Bighorn and there were no other vehicles involved in the crash.
Police said the man was not wearing a seatbelt and it appeared alcohol was a factor.
Last night a young man was killed and a woman injured after a car crashed into a tree in Papakura.
Police say alcohol and speed were factors in the accident, which happened at 9.20pm.
Earlier yesterday a 38-year-old woman was killed in a crash near Whangarei.
Police say the woman, the sole occupant of the vehicle, was found dead after a motorist spotted the car down a bank from State Highway 1 at Oakleigh, south of Whangarei.
Initial investigations had shown the vehicle failed to take a bend, left the road and hit a tree.
No other vehicles were involved and neither alcohol or drugs were suspected to be factors in the crash.
Police were called at 10.15am but the crash was believed to have happened much earlier in the morning and not reported as the car was obscured from the road.
- NZPA
