16 January 2008
One man is dead another was taken to hospital and a third was treated at the scene following a crash between a milk tanker and four motorbikes at Te Kawa yesterday.
Waikato Road Policing Manager, Inspector Leo Tooman said emergency services were called to the scene of the crash, about 350m down Te Kawa Rd from SH3, about 1.35pm.
"It's too early to speculate on the cause of the crash and Serious Crash Unit investigators are still piecing together what has happened.
"What we can say is the crash involved four westbound motorcyclists who encountered a milk tanker exiting a farm driveway as they rounded a corner."
The four motorcyclists were riding in a line and the last rider was able to stop short of the tanker but the other three riders were unable to avoid crashing into the tanker.
One of the motorcyclists, John Robin HALL, 43, of Te Awamutu, died at the scene, another rider was taken by ambulance to Waikato Hospital suffering from serious injuries after colliding with a bank while a third was treated at the scene.
The fourth rider was unhurt.
Mr HALL'S death brings the total number of fatalities on Waikato roads so far this year to five compared to one for the same period last year, an upsurge Mr Tooman said Police would be endeavouring to cut off.
"Late last month we staged a motorbike safety campaign on the roads around the Coromandel and we've just completed a high profile highway safety campaign.
"The public can expect to see a sizeable Police presence on the District's roads as we seek to bring speeds down and encourage safer driving," he said.
End