Six dead in horror long weekend on roads, 'mixed bag' of weather incoming

Author: Benjamin Plummer,
Publish Date: Sun, 22 Oct 2023, 10:00am

A horror start to the Labour Day long weekend has seen New Zealand roads claim the lives of six people and injure multiple others.

The official 2023 Labour Day weekend holiday road toll began at 4pm on Friday, ending at 6am on Tuesday.

It currently stands at three after a cyclist died in Waititi, Dunedin last night.

Police said the crash was reported at around 6pm on Mt Cargill Road. Emergency services attended but the cyclist died at the scene.

No other vehicles were involved, police said.

Earlier in the weekend, a pedestrian died after being struck by a vehicle in Waipapa, Northland.

The incident occurred at around 3.30am yesterday on Onekura Rd, with inquiries into the circumstances underway.

One person then died yesterday afternoon in a single-vehicle accident on SH26 between Te Aroha and Paeroa.

It followed the deaths of three people in crashes on Friday as New Zealanders hit the roads for the long weekend. The initial three deaths did not count towards the Labour Day weekend road toll as the crashes occurred before 4pm on Friday.

Diversions were in place after a fatal crash in Waipū on Friday afternoon. Photo / Michael Cunningham

Police yesterday reported a motorcyclist injured on Friday afternoon in a crash in Taihape, north of Palmerston North, died.

The crash between a car and motorbike occurred on State Highway 1 and was reported to police at 3.40pm.

“The motorcyclist was transported to hospital in a critical condition and later died,” police said.

“Inquiries into the circumstances of the crash are ongoing.”

Earlier, two people died and at least four others were injured on Friday afternoon.

One of those who died was involved in a crash with multiple vehicles in Northland at the intersection of SH1 and Shoemaker Rd at Waipū just before 2pm on Friday, police said.

“Sadly one person received critical injuries and has since died at the scene ... four other people have received injuries ranging from serious to minor and have been transported to hospital,” police said at the time.

One person died after a crash with multiple vehicles in Northland at the intersection of SH1 and Shoemaker Rd at Waipū just before 2pm on Friday. Photo / Michael Cunningham

The first death occurred after a two-vehicle crash on SH3 between Maxwell Station and Pukerimu Rds near Pākaraka, Whanganui, at 1.30pm on Friday, police said.

“One person died at the scene, with another was transported to hospital in a serious condition”, a spokesperson said.

In 2022, five people died over Labour weekend, with six deaths in 2021, eight in 2020, and two in 2019.

The lowest Labour Day holiday weekend year for deaths and serious injuries was 2013 when one person died and 109 people were injured.

The worst was 1983 when 13 people died and 248 were injured.

Waka Kotahi Senior Road Safety Manager Fabian Marsh says as well as keeping safe around roadworks, motorists should also remember the basics.

“When you’re out on the roads this Labour Weekend, make safe choices to protect yourself and others. Be patient, drive at a safe speed, wear your seatbelt, don’t drink and drive, make sure you’re well rested and plan ahead.”

Waka Kotahi has updated its popular Holiday Hotspots journey planning tool for Labour Weekend. The interactive traffic prediction map shows drivers where and when traffic is expected to be heaviest, based on travel patterns from previous years.

‘Mixed bag’ of weather to round out long weekend

After scorching temperatures in parts of New Zealand yesterday, Metservice meteorologist Paul Ngamanu says weather for the rest of the long weekend will be a bit of a “mixed bag”.

A low that grazed northern Aotearoa yesterday will move east today, bringing the possibility of showers for eastern parts of the North and South Island.

A southwest flow will also bring cooler temperatures today.

“Tomorrow will be the coldest day of the weekend for many places,” Ngamanu said.

Temperatures will rise again on Monday and weather across the country will generally improve.

There are no weather warnings or watches in place for the long weekend.

Motorists are urged to give themselves enough time to reach their destinations as traffic starts to build.

Labour Weekend also marks the commencement of the 2023-24 patrol season for Surf Life Saving New Zealand (SLSNZ). Today is likely to be the best day for a swim.

In Auckland, many beaches are unsafe after a sewer collapse opened a 13m sinkhole on a private property on St Georges Bay Rd, Parnell, almost a month ago. More than eight million litres of wastewater a day has been flowing into Waitematā Harbour since.

It’s still not safe to swim at 20 beaches, because of the sewer collapse, according to safeswim.org.nz

They are: