The slip took out power lines, affected 674 customers.
Abigail Webb, who lives a street over, heard a “very loud rumble” around 3am which she put down to thunder, only to see the “huge” slip near homes when it was light.
“My first thought was oh my God, I hope it didn’t reach the houses at the bottom,” she said.
Whakatāne District Council said it had not required any evacuations at this point and no evacuation centres had been established.
“Council has not requested anyone in the Whakatāne District evacuate from their homes, schools or workplaces.
“If anyone feels unsafe, we encourage you to self-evacuate to friends or family / whānau, however this is up to the individual and not a request from Whakatāne District Council,” the council said.
A spokeswoman said operational staff were following up on possible Valley Rd self-evacuations.
She said the council’s emergency management staff were in close contact with the Bay of Plenty Regional Council flood management team.