Teen believed paralysed after horror crash
A 16-year-old-boy is believed paralysed after an horrific car accident in Central Hawke's Bay last Thursday.
Noel Eparaima was one of four teenagers in a dark-blue BMW which "disintegrated" after hitting a concrete abutment and rolling for 60m on Racecourse Rd, Waipukurau. Alcohol and speed have been identified as factors in the accident.
When emergency services arrived at the scene about 11pm on Thursday, Mr Eparaima was taken to Hawke's Bay Hospital, where he remained in a critical condition in intensive care.
According to St John Ambulance Service district operations manager Stephen Smith, Mr Eparaima had received "critical spine injuries".
A Facebook post later indicated he was "paralysed".
The car's driver, Menassah [Nasah] Fraser, 19, and a female passenger, Hope Pere, 18, were in a stable condition at Hawke's Bay Hospital last night.
A 17-year-old male, understood to have the christian name TeRangi, also received serious brain injuries and was transferred to Wellington Hospital on Friday night for additional treatment.
He was listed in a serious condition in the intensive care unit.
