Shocking footage shows aftermath of New Zealand landslide as holiday camp residents scream for help with multiple children missing
Mark Tangney, who was hiking in the area, said he heard people screaming from under the rubble
Shocking footage shows the aftermath of landslides hitting a campground and a house in New Zealand which left two people dead and several missing, including a young girl.
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Emergency services were called to the slide at the base of Mount Maunganui on the country's North Island after 9.30am on Thursday.
The rubble hit Beachside Holiday Park in a town named after the extinct volcano. Another landslide hit a house overnight in the nearby Bay of Plenty community.
According to local news outlets, two bodies were recovered from a house that was damaged by the landslide.
Crews have been trying to rescue people buried in rubble, as several people, including at least one young girl, are missing.
Hiker Mark Tangney said he heard people screaming from under the rubble.
"So I just parked up and ran to help. We could hear people screaming: 'Help us, help us, get us out of here'," he told the New Zealand Herald.
Those calls persisted for about half an hour and then went silent, Tangney said.
The national fire authority hasn't heard any signs of life from under the slip since this morning. No one has been rescued from the slip so far.
Police Superintendent Tim Anderson said the number of people missing was in the "single figures".
Megan Stiffler, the deputy national commander for the Urban Search and Rescue team, said in a statement that rescuers are "carefully removing" debris and heavy machinery is on site.
"This is a complex and high-risk environment, and our teams are working to achieve the best possible outcome while keeping everyone safe. The teams will be operating overnight until the search is complete," she said.
"Our highest priority is in the Bay of Plenty operations. I’d like to acknowledge the families impacted by what’s happened. All our thoughts are with them tonight."
Authorities in the harbourside city of Tauranga are warning residents of contamination in stormwater.
"Always assume that floodwater is contaminated with farm run-off, animal and human sewage and chemicals," the Tauranga City Council wrote on Facebook.
New Zealand's government is doing "everything we can to support those impacted", its Prime Minister Chris Luxon said in a post on X.
"We are standing with these local communities in the response – and we will stand with them in the recovery too," he wrote, adding that he has spoken to several mayors about the "dangerous weather in their regions".