A Northland motorist is in shock and facing financial loss after his $25,000 ute was written off in a collision with a roaming cow on Whangārei Heads Rd yesterday.

“I didn’t see it until it was right there in my headlights,” Ethan Steventon said.

He was driving to work at his Whangārei business about 5am when he struck the black cattle beast just after entering the harbourside community of Waikaraka, where the speed limit drops from 80km/h to 60km/h.

The collision with the nearly full-grown cow forced the ute’s bull bars into its bonnet,shattering the windscreen, activating the airbags, and disablingthe engine.

Steventon said he walked away uninjured but was shaken by the crash and saddened by the cow’s death a few minutes later.

“I’m glad it didn’t suffer too long.”

At least one other cattle beast was on the road and it ran up to the dead one, sniffed it, then ran towards the nearby beach, Steventon said.

The cattle have prompted numerous reports to police in recent years and reportedly move between the native bush behind the settlement and the shoreline, possibly seeking salt and extra food.

Steventon said he’d only recently bought the ute, which he had saved for over a long period and was not yet insured. He was also out of pocket $500 for towing.

However, he knew he was lucky to have walked away unscathed and said police later told him his vehicle had withstood the collision better than others in similar crashes.

An officer dragged the dead animal off the road, and council staff removed it a few hours later.

A resident stayed with Steventon, helped direct traffic and waited with him for the tow truck.

Steventon, who has lived at Whangārei Heads for six months, said he was unaware roaming cattle were a known hazard in the area.

He had noticed a wandering stock sign on the city side of the settlement but had never seen roaming cattle in the area.

Later that morning he realised the hazard was well known when he saw a social media post from a woman who had been travelling ahead of him on the same stretch of road and had narrowly avoided hitting one of the cattle.

By lunchtime, hundreds of comments had appeared under her post, with locals sharing stories of near misses and collisions and expressing frustration that authorities had not resolved the problem.

“I just don’t want it happening to anyone else,” Steventon said. “It’s an accident waiting to happen.”

Concerns about roaming wild cattle on Whangārei Heads Rd were raised with the Northern Advocate in mid‑June 2024 by Waikaraka resident Peter Scott, who lives at Tayden Court.

Scott said mobs of feral cattle had been roaming bush, Māori land and residential properties in the area for more than a decade, sometimes charging at residents and frequently straying onto the busy coastal road at night.

He warned it was only a matter of time before someone was seriously injured or killed.

Whangārei District Council (WDC) and Northland Regional Council said the issue fell outside their jurisdiction, citing the cattle’s wild status, unclear ownership and complex land tenure.

WDC put up Wandering Stock signs in the area.

Residents were told the problem was effectively a community one, to be addressed through fencing, signs or consensus on culling.
Residents of Whangārei's harbourside community of Waikaraka and drivers involved in near misses and collisions with roaming wild cattle there, believe a fatal crash involving the stock is inevitable. Photo / Sarah Curtis

The stalemate has coincided with further incidents, including a December 2024 crash in which Whangārei man Troy Johnson narrowly avoided serious injury after hitting a large wild cow on the same stretch of road in the early hours.

Johnson said he, too, feared a fatality was inevitable if meaningful action was not taken.

In early 2025, professional musterer Harley Barlow told the Northern Advocate the Waikaraka cattle could be safely removed, claiming the task was not as difficult as authorities had suggested.

He believed bureaucracy – rather than practical barriers – was preventing a solution, but was aware the area’s many landowners were unable to agree the cattle should at least be culled.

WDC’s health and bylaws manager Reiner Mussle confirmed the cow hit yesterday was removed by council staff, but said council had no information about it being hit by a vehicle.

“We continue to share community concerns regarding the risks of wandering stock and have been working with Northland Regional Council and community representatives on this issue.

“While we have seen a significant decrease in reported incidents in this area this year, a continued focus is needed by all parties.”

Sarah Curtis is a news reporter for the Northern Advocate, focusing on a wide range of issues. She has nearly 20 years’ experience in journalism, much of which she spent court reporting in Gisborne. She is passionate about stories that make a difference.