A 25-year-old mother who was killed in a single car crash near Napier yesterday was not wearing a seatbelt say police.
The woman's two-year-old daughter escaped with only moderate injuries as she was strapped in her car seat, Inspector Marty Edghill, of central police communications, said today.
The car had veered off State Highway 50, between Hastings and Napier, and ended up in a ditch about midday yesterday,
Police, who are still investigating the cause of the accident, are yet to release the name of the woman.
It was the first of two fatal crashes in Hawke's Bay within a few hours.
A man died after the car he was in crashed into a power pole at the intersection of State Highway 2 and Drumpeel Road in Otane, south of Hastings, about 6.50pm.
A passing motorist found the vehicle which had rolled on to its roof. A second man was taken to hospital with serious injuries.
Police said it was not known what caused the crash.
Meanwhile, a man who died after a car crashed into a traffic light pole about 9am on Saturday in Great South Road, Papatoetoe, has been named by police.
He was Feroz Mohammad, 20, of Otahuhu.
Speed and impatience were contributing factors in a crash which left another man injured, Counties Manukau Senior Sergeant Ian Brenchley told NZPA.
The car mounted the kerb on two left wheels and was driven along the pavement for about 30m before it hit the traffic lights.
