A truck driver has died following a freak accident in which a large piece of timber hit his wing mirror, causing it to swing around and strike him in the head.
His quick-thinking passenger grabbed the wheel to steer the truck to safety when the accident happened on State Highway
1 at Pukerua Bay, north of Wellington, about 6.50am today.
The driver, a 36-year-old man from Paraparaumu, was airlifted to Wellington Hospital in a critical condition by the Westpac Rescue Helicopter. However, he died from his injuries later in the morning.
His name has not yet been released.
It was a "really freak accident", said Sergeant Martin Tunley of Porirua police.
The 50km/h section of road was narrower than normal because of road works.
The 3m long, 100mm by 50mm piece of dressed timber had hit the south-bound truck's sizeable wing mirror, causing it to swing round at speed and strike the driver in the head.
The female passenger was uninjured.
Police are appealing for information about a white Nissan single cab ute, seen beforehand driving in Pukerua Bay and then heading north on SH1 with a length of timber protruding over the driver's cab on a strange angle.
They would also like to talk to anyone who witnessed the accident or who was travelling on SH1 around the time.
- NZPA