Passenger swept to his death

A Northland man died in a flooded creek that swept the van he was in off a ford on Saturday night.

The driver managed to escape with minor injuries.

The incident happened just before 10pm in Omanaia, west of Kaikohe, as the men attempted to cross a ford between a house and State Highway 12.

The death was one of six fatal road accidents over a bloody weekend.

Volunteer firefighter David Williams said the man who was swept away had ‘‘a wife and a couple of kids in Rawene’’ and that it was understood he had more family in Wellington.

‘‘He was a lovely, happy chap who’d had his share of issues over the years’’ who had formerly worked as a pump attendant at a Rawene service station, said Williams.

The stream that the man died in ‘‘had risen 20-fold’’ on the night of the accident, he said.

‘‘We’d had torrential rain for ages and ages and the stream was a raging torrent.’’

Eighteen volunteer firefighters joined three police officers, four St Johns ambulance attendants, and ‘‘10 to 15 locals’’ in the search for the man, said Williams.

‘‘I felt at risk while searching, due to the force of the water . . . We worked in pairs because if someone slipped on the bank they’d have been washed clean away.’’

The man’s body was recovered from the water about 100 metres downstream of the van.

‘‘We’re not sure if he was trapped in the van or got out and was swept away,’’ said Williams.

A police spokesperson said kaumatua blessed the site and that the serious crash unit was investigating the cause of the incident.

Another fatal Northland accident occurred in Towai early on Sunday morning, when a car crashed into a tree.

In response, Northland Duty Inspector Riki Whiu said police’s ‘‘condolences and thoughts go out to the local families of those that have died in these tragic incidents.’’