Mt Maunganui Landslide: Witness describes hearing pleas to 'get us out of here'

A man who rushed to help people trapped after a massive landslide on Mount Maunganui has revealed he heard cries for help from the debris. 

Mark Tangney was heading to The Mount for a hike when he noticed something was very wrong. 

"I could just hear people screaming, so I just parked up and ran to help," he told the NZ Herald. 

"I was one of the first there. 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'". 

Mark said he and the other people he was with "went hard" for about half an hour trying to free those inside, but stopped hearing voices after about 15 minutes. 

They "just kept going" but were called off by police when it was decided it was too dangerous to continue. 

The toilet block had travelled about 20 meters from its original location, Mark said, and it was twisted and turned around. He thought there could have been people stuck under one of several caravans that had been pushed by the mud.

We could hear the people underneath screaming for help, so I just wanted to help until the rescue crew got there.

He told the Herald he was shaken but "doing okay".

Meanwhile, an Australian tourist detailed the "scariest thing he'd ever felt in his life" after narrowly escaping the landslide. 

Sonny Worrall from Newcastle was swimming in the hotpools at the base of Mauao near the Beachside Holiday Park when disaster struck. 

"I was the closest person to the mountain as it happened," he told Stuff. 

“As I’m swimming, I heard this huge landslide behind me, trees cracking, and there was a caravan that almost hit me. I had to dive into the next pool.

Tony said the caravan was moving with such force that it crashed through a cinderblock wall. 

"Luckily, I got out of there in time because where I was swimming is all now covered up with dirt, and there's a tree laying on where I was swimming," he said, adding: "I was just fearing for my life."  

It was the scariest thing I’ve ever felt in my life.

Still shaking, Tony was asked if he saw any other people caught up in the slide.  

"Luckily, there were no children in the children's pool," he said. 

"But who knows, there could have been someone in the caravan that was swept over."

An urgent rescue operation remains underway, as authorities are determined to find those still unaccounted for - one of whom is confirmed to be a young girl. Various news outlets understand that more children could be involved.

Police District Commander Superintendent Tim Anderson told the media this afternoon that it was "possible we will find someone alive", adding he was unable to comment on exact figures, but placed the number of people missing in the "single digits".

Officials have asked that the community please stay away from the area. Our thoughts are with everyone affected.