Family flee mudslide and trees

By STEPHEN COOK

A family went from playing Scrabble to making a mad scramble for their lives as dozens of mature pohutukawa trees and tonnes of mud cascaded down a 70m drop toward their West End home.

The Muru family, from Ohope, had been playing Scrabble in the lounge on Saturday afternoon when they heard an earth-shaking crack followed by the thunderous sound of dozens of trees hurtling toward their home.

"It was absolutely terrifying," Sharon Muru said.

She and her husband Grant picked up their three children and bolted out of the front door as trees and mud collided with a neighbour's glasshouse, and fell to the rear of another property, narrowly missing their back doorstep.

When the Murus eventually plucked up the courage to check their property, they realised how lucky they had been.

"The trees would have gone straight through our house and collected all of us - simple as that," Mrs Muru said.

"We were very lucky."

The Murus and several other families were evacuated from the area on Saturday afternoon. They have no idea when they will be allowed to return.

Two homes above the Muru house are teetering on the edge of a clifftop and there are fears they could tumble if further earthquakes or rain disturb the area.

Mr Muru said his children had been shaken by the ordeal and it would take them some time before they once again felt comfortable in their home."I think we will all be having a few uneasy nights for a while. It's just that fear of the unknown now," he said.

"We won't be hurrying to get back into our place, that's for sure."