A five-year-old child is critically injured after being hit by a car in south Auckland, with the driver believed to have been using a cellphone.
Counties Manukau road policing manager Insp Tony Wakelin said the child was crossing Shortland Ave in Manurewa when they were struck at about 3:20pm on Thursday.
"Investigations are ongoing into the exact causes of the crash, however police believe the use of a mobile phone may have been a factor in what occurred," he said in a statement.
Charges were being considered, added Wakelin.
It was one of two avoidable crashes in the area on Thursday, said Wakelin, who was urging motorists to make better decisions.
He said a crash at about 4:30pm in Tuakau saw a 21-year-old man, who was later found to be over the legal alcohol limit, driving double the speed limit before crashing into a house.
"Drinking and driving, speeding and using cell phones all contribute to someone's loved ones possibly being killed on our roads.
"The message is: Don't think it won’t happen to me, as the decisions we are seeing being made by drivers suggest - it might."
