Five people died on New Hampshire highways yesterday in two separate accidents that shut down major arteries and backed up traffic at the end of the holiday weekend.

In Peterborough, the police said four adults were killed in a collision on Route 202 yesterday morning. The Peterborough police chief said three of the victims were in a sport utility vehicle and the fourth was in a car. The road was closed near the Jaffrey town line most of the day. It opened again by late afternoon.

New Hampshire officials say one person died in a crash on southbound Interstate 93 in Hooksett, closing the road all day and creating more congestion for fall tourists heading home during the holiday weekend.

New Hampshire Transportation Department spokesman Bill Boynton said a tractor-trailer carrying vehicles collided with a car near Exit 9 about 1:40 p.m. yesterday. The highway was closed at the Interstate 293 split, and traffic was diverted from I-293 to the Everett Turnpike southbound.

Traffic was still backed up all the way to exit 2 on Interstate 89 in Concord late yesterday afternoon and travel was slowed into the evening.

Monitor staff and wire reports