Tributes have been paid to a woman who died when a car she was in was buried by a landslide in Dorset.

Rosemary Snell, who was in her 60s, had been reported missing along with an unnamed man.

Police inquiries traced the pair to the Beaminster area, near Dorchester, on July 7, which coincided with heavy rain and a landslide that closed the Beaminster Tunnel.

Excavations of the mud and debris by the fire service located a car at the entrance of the tunnel. Ms Snell's body was found inside the car, which was discovered on Monday evening.

It is feared that she and the unnamed man were buried in the car for more than a week

Ms Snell has been described as a stalwart of the Women's Institute and was well known in the village of Misterton, near Crewkerne, Somerset.

One villager said:"I think everyone knew her in the village. She had a magnificent spirit and was most enjoyable company socially. Everyone will be terribly shocked by this."

Ms Snell was a registered London tour guide and was a member of The Guild of Guide Lecturers, where she listed her interests as antiques, gardens and social history.