PACHUCA, Mexico (AFP) - A landslide in central Mexico smothered a road with rocks, mud and trees, killing seven people driving on the motorway, police said.

Sunday's accident happened in the central state of Hidalgo when part of a hill slid down onto the road, Federal Police said.

A local resident in the nearby town of Tepeji del Rio had warned via Twitter that the land above the road looked unstable.

Hidalgo governor Jose Francisco Olvera said the deaths could have been avoided.

But he added that assessing the state of the hill when the warning was received would have been difficult due to the torrential hailstorm.

However, highway officials said the warning tweet had been acted upon but had turned out to be inaccurate.

Earlier Sunday, 16 people died in another highway accident in Hidalgo when a bus ran into a wall.