Police have urged motorists around Hawke’s Bay to “please take your time and drive to the conditions” this holiday period, following two fatal crashes over the weekend.

On Friday afternoon, one person died and another was flown to Wellington Hospital in a critical condition after a crash on State Highway 2 near Dannevirke.

That crash was between a car and a motorbike and happened on the Oringi North overbridge.

The injured person had improved by Sunday and was in a stable condition in Wellington Hospital’s ICU.

Later on Friday night, another person died following a two-vehicle crash along Elwood Rd in Waipatu, on the outskirts of Hastings, just after midnight.

No one else was seriously injured in that crash.

Inquiries into the circumstances of both crashes are under way.

There were also at least three other crashes around Hawke’s Bay over the weekend which required a response from emergency services.

One of those crashes temporarily shut State Highway 51 between Napier and Hastings after a single-vehicle crash at Awatoto just after noon on Saturday.

No one was injured, and the road was closed “to recover the vehicle” involved in the crash.

The road toll has now reached 17 deaths this year across Hawke’s Bay as of Sunday, which is the same figure for all of 2022.

National Road Policing Centre director Superintendent Steve Greally said “police can’t control the actions of every driver 24/7”.

The road toll has risen to 17 in Hawke's Bay this year.

“We can’t be beside you in the car telling you to slow down, or to put your seatbelt on.

“Road safety is something we all have to take a greater responsibility for.”

He said police patrols would be highly visible over the upcoming holiday period.

“Expect to see police patrols anytime, anywhere,” he said.

“Our staff will be out on roads, often in locations you least expect us to be. So please take your time and drive to the conditions.”

He said, generally speaking and not referring directly to the crashes at the weekend, that the main cause of deaths and serious injuries on roads included speed, alcohol, drugs, distraction and unrestrained drivers and passengers.