Weekend road toll rises to four

Four people died on the roads in separate accidents over the weekend.

One person died after a car and petrol tanker collided near Wanganui early today.

Two people in the car were injured in the crash on State Highway 3 near Maxwell, between Wanganui and Waverley.

One of the injured later died in hospital.

The tanker ended up resting down a bank, leaking fuel into a nearby river.

Emergency services spent the day transferring the remaining petrol from the tanker into another tanker for removal, and using foam to clean up the Okehu Stream.

The stream will be off-limits for fishing for up to four days.

Meanwhile, police have released the name of the woman who was killed after the car she was driving hit a bridge near Havelock North early this morning.

She was Raewyn Dawne Wedlake, 54, from Hastings.

The crash happened at 1.40am, on Te Aute Rd, near the intersection with Gilpin Rd, Havelock North. Ms Wedlake was alone in the car.

Police said it appeared she lost control and hit the bridge abutment side-on.

One person was killed and another two seriously injured after a van collided with a parked truck in the Taranaki township of Inglewood about 12.45am this morning.

The Mitsubishi Delica van crashed into a truck and trailer unit after the driver failed to negotiate a bend on Rewa St, police said.

A passenger in the van, Devon Ray Gopperth, 17, from Inglewood, died at the scene.

All three occupants of the van had to be cut free by emergency services.

The 18-year-old male driver and the other passenger were taken to Taranaki Base Hospital with injuries which are not thought to be life threatening.

Police believe excessive speed contributed to the crash, but the exact cause is still being investigated.

A Tauranga man died about 8.40pm on Saturday night after falling from an unregistered farm trike into the path of a car on State Highway 2, at Te Puna, just north of Tauranga.

He was Stephen Mark Caddigan, aged 19.

Police said it appeared that Mr Caddigan and a companion were heading east on SH2 when they lost control of the trike and crashed.

An approaching car then ran over Mr Caddigan as he lay on the road.

His companion suffered only minor injuries.

- NZPA