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A car has hit an “unknown number” of pedestrians in Upper Hutt this afternoon, closing the city’s main road and causing serious injuries. 

The crash happened shortly before 1.45pm on Fergusson Drive. 

Three people have been taken to hospital in serious conditions. One was taken to Hutt Hospital and the other two were taken to Wellington Regional Hospital, a spokeswoman for Wellington Free Ambulance said. 

The blockage was disrupting traffic headed for the Wellington Cup at Trentham Racecourse. 

“It ... involved a car and several pedestrians,” police said in a statement. 

“There are serious injuries involved.” 

Fegusson Drive near Tararua St was expected to be blocked for “at least another hour”, police said just before 3pm. 

Police said motorists should follow detours and take alternate routes. 

Fire and Emergency New Zealand was called to the crash at 1.43pm. A spokeswoman said two cars collided and “two or three” pedestrians were involved. 

Firefighters cut one person out from one of the vehicles, the spokeswoman said. 

One of the cars has also hit key electricity infrastructure on the street and firefighters are waiting for linesmen to come to assist, she said. 

Fire and Emergency had not received any reports of power outages in the area, she said. Power distributor Wellington Electricity’s website did not show any reports of power outages. 

Upper Hutt City councillor Matt Casey said people should be aware of heavy traffic in the area following the crash. 

“There’s a few events on today, so just be aware that traffic is heavy as well,” Casey said. 

“Hopefully those who are injured will recover and hopefully others are all right too.”