Teen told: ‘Slow down’
Residents rushing to help find seven kids trapped and bleeding. Report by Alexandra Nelson and Libby Wilson. Cheeky Nikau, 11, dies in ‘hell smash’
Family and friends have paid tribute to an 11-year-old boy who died hours after a car packed with young children crashed into a tree in the Waikato.
Nikau Tamati was one of seven children, relatives aged between nine and 15, who were in the car when it crashed in Ngaruawahia on Friday evening.
Two of them had to be cut from the Toyota Wish, a compact people mover, and all seven were taken to Waikato Hospital after emergency services were called about 6.20pm.
Police confirmed yesterday afternoon that one boy had died in hospital.
A cousin of Nikau told the Sunday StarTimes he would ‘‘never be forgotten.
‘‘He will always remain in our hearts and I give all the support to the family who grieve for him. We once had a brave soldier whose time has come to an end but we will cherish every second we have spent with him. Rest easy little brother. Love and miss you forever and always.’’
Nikau was an aspiring musician who loved drumming, she said.
Another cousin said Nikau was ‘‘kind, energetic, fun and entertaining’’.
‘‘His family pray in jesus that he is well and safe up there.’’
A tangi was expected to be held at Turangawaewae Marae in the next week.
All of the occupants were cousins, said the relative.
The six surviving children were still in Waikato Hospital, with one still in critical condition and the other serious. One underwent surgery yesterday.
Detective Senior Sergeant Stephen Ambler said: ‘‘This is an absolute tragedy for a number of families and the community as a whole. All of the youths are local to the area and our thoughts are with the family and friends of all those involved.’’
A Durham St resident who lives metres from the crash site rushed out after she heard a horrendous bang.
She called 111 as other neighbours rushed to the scene, and yelled out to ask how many were in the car.
‘‘It was awful. It really was. It was a hell of a crash,’’ she said. ‘‘I was saying, ‘don’t move anybody’, but of course they were dragging them out. How do you know if it’s a back [injured] or whatever?’’
The woman, who declined to give her name, found herself comforting one of the girls from the car.
The girl said she told the driver ‘‘he was going too fast, but he wouldn’t listen’’.
Parents and whanau of the children involved arrived while emergency services were still dealing with the accident, the woman said.
She added the scene was upsetting, as the driver was trapped and another boy had a badly injured arm.
‘‘[The driver] had to be flying. I was thinking, if he had missed that tree, would he have come into my house?’’
Police are speaking to the registered owner of the Toyota Wish, who, they said, knows the children.
The Serious Crash Unit is investigating, and asking for information on the movements of the vehicle.
Anyone who saw it in the Ngaruawahia township between 5pm and 6.15pm on Friday is asked to contact Detective Sergeant Andre Kavanagh of Hamilton CIB on 07 858 6200. They can also provide information anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Waikato District Mayor Allan Sanson said the crash was a shock for the tightknit community.
‘‘I would say that the families involved would be in crisis mode and grief mode. It’s very, very tragic.’’
Yesterday a person had a heart attack at the scene of a fatal crash in South Auckland.
A single vehicle, carrying two people, was involved in the crash on Clarks Beach Rd about 20 minutes west of Papakura, about 5pm.
Fire Service northern communications shift manager Scott Osmond said one person had died and one person was trapped in the crushed car.
A member of the public suffered a cardiac arrest at the scene, Osmond said.