An emergency convoy was delivering food, water and other supplies to survivors of a landslide that devastated a remote village in the mountains of Papua New Guinea on Saturday and is feared to have buried dozens of people, officials said.
Serhan Aktoprak, head of the International Organization for Migration mission to the South Pacific island nation, said an assessment team reported in the predawn hours on Friday that 100 people were killed and 60 were killed when a mountainside collapsed in Enga province. A house was buried.
Aktoplak acknowledged that the death toll could be higher if local authorities’ estimates of the number of buried houses were correct.
“The scale is so large that I wouldn’t be surprised if there were more casualties than the 100 people previously reported,” Aktoplak said. “If 60 houses were destroyed, then the number of casualties must be higher than 100.” many.”
As of early Saturday, only three bodies had been recovered from the vast swath of mud, boulders and debris that struck Yambali. (370 miles).
Aktoplak said seven people, including a child, were treated. He didn’t know the extent of their injuries.
“There are fears that the number of casualties will increase dramatically,” said Aktoplak, who is based in Port Moresby.
Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape said on Friday he would release information on the scale of the damage and casualties as soon as it became available.
All the vegetable gardens that supported the village’s subsistence farming population were destroyed, and three streams that provided drinking water were buried by landslides that also blocked the province’s main highway.
Aktoplak said a convoy left the provincial capital Wabagh carrying food, water and other necessities to affected villages 60 kilometers (35 miles) away.
Local villager Andrew Ruing said survivors were in desperate need of help.
“People can’t cry or do anything because it’s difficult for them. Because this has never happened in history. So we’re calling on the country to Governments, local people, businesses, anywhere, from high places – we are looking for help.
In addition to food and water, Aktoplak said the villagers were in urgent need of shelter and blankets. Relief will be targeted at the most vulnerable groups, including children, women, people with disabilities and the elderly, he said.
Rescue efforts were delayed as landslides closed the province’s main highway, which serves the Porgera gold mine and the neighboring town of Porgera.
Aktoplak said debris from the landslide, which was 6 to 8 meters (20 to 26 feet) deep, also caused power outages in the area.
Unstable soil poses risks to rescue efforts and to communities below the mountain.
Papua New Guinea is a diverse developing country with a population of mostly subsistence farmers and 800 languages spoken. There are few roads outside the big cities.
With a population of 10 million, it is the most populous South Pacific country after Australia, which has a population of approximately 27 million.
The United States and Australia are building closer defense ties with the strategically important country, while China is seeking closer security and economic ties with the country.
U.S. President Joe Biden and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said their governments were ready to help deal with the landslide.
Biden became the first sitting U.S. president to visit Papua New Guinea a year ago, but canceled the trip because of the congressional debt crisis.
“Our prayers go out to all the families affected by this tragedy and to all the first responders who put themselves at risk to help their fellow citizens,” Biden said in a statement.
“The United States stands with our close partner and friend Papua New Guinea today and forever,” Biden added.
“All Australians are grieving for our brothers and sisters in Papua New Guinea following the horrific landslides,” Albanese posted on social media platform
Australia is Papua New Guinea’s closest neighbor and its most generous provider of foreign aid.
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