Witnesses recall hearing the muffled screams of tourists trapped beneath the debris

CHILDREN are feared to be among nine people still trapped under mud and debris after a landslide ripped through a campsite in New Zealand.

Officials say they haven’t found any signs of life for hours now as terrifying footage captured the moment the landslide came crashing down the volcano.

Aerial view of an explosion and fire in a residential area.
The moment the landslide hits the park as it uproots a tree and sweeps away caravansCredit: Facebook/Hinepukohurangi Live

Aerial view of a large landslide on a green hillside next to a building and vehicles.
A landslide has ripped through a tourist campsite in New ZealandCredit: AFP

New Zealand Landslide
Trees and piled-up vehicles seen at the foot of the mountain as rescuers gatherCredit: AP
Tourists fled in terror as a wall of earth and rubble crashed through the Beachside Holiday Park site at the base of Mount Maunganui on New Zealand’s North Island.

Footage shows mounds of debris being swept towards the site at speed as many of the tourists slept in the early hours of Thursday morning.

At one point, a tree is uprooted and flung down the side of the hill.

Caravans had been buried, toppled and strewn like toys on the site which was deemed so unstable that emergency crews were forced to withdraw.

Some of the caravans were swept over 65ft away from where they originally stood, witnesses said.

Nearby hiker Mark Tangney said people were screaming as the landslide smashed into the complex at around 9:30am, leaving dozens running for their lives.

He told the New Zealand Herald: “I could just hear people screaming, so I just parked up and ran to help.

“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’.”