Motorists caught in Bay of Plenty landslip were lucky to survive, when one vehicle was pinned under a boulder and another was buried almost up to its roof.
One person is critically injured and another has moderate injuries after the slip on State Highway 36 between Tauranga and Rotorua.
The pair were injured when a large boulder hit their vehicle and pinned them inside. They have been taken to Rotorua Hospital.
No one was hurt in another vehicle, which veered off the road into a stream.
Tauranga Fire Service station officer Peter Clark said the car was buried and it took half an hour to get the occupants out.
"Two people were trapped and they had boulders all around the car and up on the roof and we just assisted with the Rotorua fire brigade to extricate them."
Traffic chief Ian Campion said the slip was near Te Matai Rd, where there are currently roadworks.
He said it was quite large and emergency services would be at the scene for some time. The road will be closed for at least 24 hours.
View Road closed after SH36 slip in a larger map
- NEWSTALK ZB
