Two people have died in separate crashes within an hour of each other yesterday evening — bringing the preliminary King's Birthday holiday road toll to two.
The first crash occurred on State Highway 1 in Allanton, around 20km southwest of Dunedin.
Emergency services were called to the intersection of Law Rd just after 5.40pm.
One person died at the scene and two others sustained minor injuries, police said.
NZTA said the road reopened at around 1.30am on Saturday after police completed their onsite investigation.
Less than an hour later, one person was killed and two others were in critical condition following a crash in central Taupō.
Emergency services were called to the two-vehicle crash on Te Heuheu Rd just before 6.30pm on Friday.
"The road remains closed while a scene examination is conducted," a police spokesperson said.
St John said it responded with three ambulances, a helicopter, a rapid response unit, and one manager.
"Our crews assessed and treated two patients in a critical condition, one was transported to Waikato Hospital and one was transported to Rotorua Hospital," a St John spokesperson said.
"Our crews assessed and treated two additional patients in a minor/moderate condition at the scene."
Police, Fire and Emergency NZ and Hato Hone St John have urged all road users to take care over the long weekend.
Superintendent Steve Greally, Director of Road Policing, said officers would be focused on the four main causes of death and serious injury on roads — speed, impairment, distractions, and restraints.
"We've seen too many lives lost so far this year," Greally said.
"Our officers unapologetically focus on these behaviours in an effort to prevent other families and communities from being torn apart due to a crash that could have been avoided."
The official road toll period is from 4pm on Friday to 6am on Tuesday.
Last year, there were five deaths recorded on the roads over King's Birthday weekend — the highest since 2019.
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