Heartbreaking footage shows devastation of Papua New Guinea landslide that wiped out ‘entire village’
- The landslide struck Kaokalam village in Papua New Guinea in Enga province
Heartbreaking video footage of a landslide that wiped out an ‘entire village’ in Papua New Guinea has revealed the extent of the devastation left behind by the natural disaster.
More than 100 people are believed to have died in the landslide that struck the village of Kaokalam in Enga province, about 600 kilometers northwest of the South Pacific island capital of Port Moresby, at around 3 a.m. local time on Friday. time.
One video shows a local villager filming the scene after the landslide, as their camera pans to reveal collapsed houses and trees.
They can be heard speaking a local dialect while others cry in the background.
Residents say current estimates of the death toll are above 100, although authorities have not confirmed this figure.
Heartbreaking video footage of a landslide that wiped out an ‘entire village’ in Papua New Guinea has shown the extent of the devastation left behind by the natural disaster
More than 100 people are believed to have died in the landslide that struck the village of Kaokalam in Enga province, about 600 km northwest of the South Pacific island capital of Port Moresby, at about 3 a.m. local time on Friday.
Villagers say the death toll could be much higher.
Scores of houses have been destroyed by the landslide, while it is understood that many of the residents sleeping inside may have been buried under the rubble.
Vincent Pyati, president of the local Community Development Association, said the number of victims was unknown.
βThe landslide happened around 3pm last night and it appears more than a hundred houses have been buried underground. It is not yet known how many people were in those houses,β he told AFP.
Elizabeth Laruma, who heads a women’s business association in Porgera, a town in the same province near the Porgera gold mine, said houses were razed when the side of a mountain gave way.
“It happened when people were still sleeping in the early hours and the whole village collapsed,” Ms Laruma told ABC.
“As far as I can assume, there are well over a hundred people buried underground.”
She said the landslide blocked the road between Porgera and the village, raising concerns about the town’s own supply of fuel and goods.
Villager Ninga Role, who was away when the landslide struck, expects at least four of his relatives to have been killed.
‘There are some huge rocks and plants, trees. The buildings collapsed,β Ms Role said.
“These things make it difficult to find the bodies quickly.”
People gather at the site of a landslide in Maip Mulitaka in Papua New Guinea’s Enga Province on May 24, 2024
Scores of houses have been destroyed by the landslide, while it is understood that many of the residents sleeping inside may have been buried under the rubble.
Vincent Pyati, president of the local Community Development Association, said the number of victims was unknown