A motorcyclist injured in a Labour Weekend crash has died, taking the holiday weekend toll to eight.
Waikato district road policing manager Inspector Leo Tooman said Geoffrey William Druce, 56, of Ngaruawahia, died last Thursday from head injuries he sustained in a crash on Labour Day.
Mr Druce failed to take a moderate bend on his Ducati near near Te Kuiti and travelled along the gravel and grass verge for 25-30m before hitting a wooden strainer post.
"While the crash is still under investigation, it appears speed was a factor,'' Mr Tooman said.
Mr Druce's death came on the same day as police appealed for witnesses to another potential tragedy when a car passing vehicles with oncoming traffic clipped a truck on Piako Road, near Morrinsville.
Last night, a driver on the Kopu-Hikuai Road lost control on a bend and slid sideways into an oncoming car.
The 27-year-old man driving the out-of-control car was airlifted to Auckland Hospital suffering from critical injuries, while the two occupants of the other vehicle suffered moderate to serious injuries.
"In each of these incidents the basics of road safety appeared to have been ignored. People may say they've have heard it all before, about booze, belts and speed but we're still not getting it right,'' Mr Tooman said.
"The most tragic thing about each incident is that the situations were avoidable and we ask people thinking of making a 50-50 decision to think again, because the odds are too high.''
