Five Tongan workers including a father and son have been killed in a horrific car crash near Tauranga in New Zealand last night.

The victims have been named as Halani Fine, Koli Vaipulu, Sitiveni Vaipulu, Sione Teulaka, and Samuela Taukatelata.

New Zealand Police said that at about 8:10pm on August 2 a northbound vehicle pulled out of Dawson Road heading north onto the State Highway 2 near Katikai and was struck by a southbound logging truck and trailer and all five occupants of the northbound vehicle are deceased. The truck driver was uninjured.

"It was very traumatic for all involved," the Police stated, adding that this stretch of road is particularly unforgiving with volumes of trafffic using the narrow road.

New Zealand media reports that the victims were all workers at Aongatete Coolstores and had just finished their shift when the car they were in pulled out of a side road onto the main highway.