Everything you need to know about the landslide in Papua New Guinea

The disaster has reportedly buried scores of people, with initial assessments suggesting around 100 fatalities and 60 houses buried in Enga province.

By: Express Web Desk
New Delhi | Updated: May 25, 2024 10:37 PM IST

4 min read

A locals gather amid the damage after a landslide in Maip Mulitaka, Enga province, Papua New Guinea (Reuters Phorto)

Hundreds are feared dead and more than 300 buried after a massive landslide levelled a remote village in northern Papua New Guinea, reported Reuters citing the local media, on Saturday, May 25. The toll is expected to rise as many more are feared trapped under the rubble after the landslide struck the region late Friday.

Devastation and Search Efforts

A catastrophic landslide struck Yamboli village in the isolated Enga province of Papua New Guinea. The first emergency convoy delivered essential supplies such as food and water to the affected area on Saturday. The disaster has reportedly buried scores of people, leading survivors to search through tons of earth and rubble by hand in an attempt to find missing relatives, with initial assessments suggesting around 100 fatalities and 60 houses buried.

People cross over the landslide area to get to the other side in Yambali village, Papua New Guinea (AP Photo)

Enga province MP Amos Akem informed the Guardian that reports from the ground indicate the landslide buried over 300 people and destroyed 1,182 houses. He noted that rescue efforts have been hindered by a blocked road connecting the affected Yambali village to the provincial capital, Wabag. Enga Province has only one main highway, which was heavily impacted by the landslide, creating debris up to 8 meters deep and affecting more than 200 square kilometers (77 square miles) of land, according to a report by BBC.

United Nations (UN) official Serhan Aktoprak told the AP news agency that the landslide affected an area equivalent to the size of three to four football fields and the death toll could exceed 100.

The Impact on Yambali Village

The landslide occurred early on Friday in Yambali, a village home to nearly 4,000 people, located 600 kilometers (370 miles) northwest of the capital, Port Moresby. As of early Saturday, only three bodies had been recovered. Medical treatment has been provided to seven individuals, including a child, though the extent of their injuries is currently unknown.

An injured person is carried on a stretcher to seek medical assistance after a landslide in Yambali village, Papua New Guinea (AP Photo)

The landslide has obliterated all food gardens that sustain the village’s subsistence farming population and buried the three streams that provide drinking water to the village as per report by AP. The situation is exacerbated by Papua New Guinea’s challenging geography, with few roads outside the larger cities, making the remote areas inaccessible.

Emergency responders are facing difficulties in using heavy machinery for excavation because of the risk and cultural sensitivities related to potentially desecrating bodies within the rubble.

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International Response

International leaders have expressed their support and readiness to assist Papua New Guinea. United States of America President Joe Biden and Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese have both offered their condolences and aid.

The Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, said his country stood “ready to assist” and that Australians were grieving “for our brothers and sisters in Papua New Guinea after the terrible landslide”.