Tourist critically ill after quad bike accident

An Australian woman remains in a critical condition after a quad bike accident only days after her arrival in New Zealand.

Chelsea Callaghan, 38, of Melbourne, crashed a quad bike during a farm tour at Te Kohanga, between Taukau and Port Waikato, on Thursday afternoon.

She continues to fight for her life since the crash only a few days into her stay in the country.

This morning she was in a critical condition in Auckland City Hospital, a spokeswoman said.

It took at least two hours for Ms Callaghan to be taken to hospital after she was found unconscious by other members of her tour group.

The Westpac Rescue Helicopter struggled to find somewhere to land in the steep terrain near where Ms Callaghan crashed and an on-board medic had to intubate her before she was flown to Auckland.

Ms Callaghan, who was wearing a helmet, suffered a serious head injury and was in an induced coma at hospital.

Ms Callaghan was the victim of the second serious quad bike accident last week after 10-year-old Sam White was killed at a farm in Wairarapa a day earlier.

It was the third quadbike death this year and prompted calls for a review of safety regulations.

Chief Coroner Neil MacLean said at the time that safety messages around the use of quad bikes could go a long way to preventing utterly unnecessary deaths.

- By Kieran Campbell of APNZ

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