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One person has died after a two-vehicle crash on Dansey Rd near Rotorua.

Police were called to the crash, believed to have involved a rubbish truck, shortly before 8am.

Two others were injured, one of them seriously, police said.

The Serious Crash Unit is at the scene. Dansey Rd remains closed, with diversions in place on State Highway 5.

A man at the cordon, who didn’t want to be named, said he got word of the crash and went immediately to support family members arriving there, including the mother of a little girl believed to have been in a car that collided with the rear of the rubbish truck.

He said the crash was about 2km from the State Highway 5 turnoff.

There was frustration for the family as they were not able to get to the scene.

Dansey Rd has been closed since the crash.

“I tried to ask the cop if we could go up because I was standing there on the side of the road with the mother of the kid.“

Motorists were asked to take alternative routes if possible.

Members of the public have been speaking to the police at the cordon, a reporter at the scene said.

Several cars are parked near the intersection.

Mamaku Volunteer Fire Brigade posted to its Facebook page that Dansey Rd was closed. Drivers were asked to avoid it and to “drive safe”.

Hato Hone St John was notified of the crash at 7.58am.

They responded with one ambulance and one rapid response vehicle and took one patient in a serious condition to Rotorua Hospital.

Police at the SH5/Dansey Rd intersection. Photo / Ben Fraser

One patient in a moderate condition was assessed and treated at the scene, a spokesperson said.

The reporter at the scene said several police cars and fire appliances had come from Dansey Rd and headed towards Rotorua. The cordon was still in place, run by traffic management staff.