Filmed: Papua New Guinea reports more than 2,000 people buried in landslide

More than 2,000 people have been buried in Papua New Guinea after a massive landslide swept through a remote village in the small southwest Pacific country.

“The landslide buried more than 2,000 people alive and caused significant destruction,” the country’s national disaster center told the UN office in the capital Port Moresby.

A remote hillside village in Enga province was almost wiped out when part of Mount Mungalo collapsed early Friday morning, burying dozens of houses and the people sleeping there.

The landslide caused “major destruction to buildings and vegetable gardens and had a major impact on the country’s economic lifeline”, the disaster office said. The main highway leading to the Porgera mine was “completely blocked”, he said in the letter received. by UN officials Monday morning.

“The situation remains unstable as the landslide continues to evolve slowly, posing ongoing danger to both rescue teams and survivors.” The scale of the disaster required “immediate and collaborative actions from all stakeholders”, he said, including the military, and national and regional responders.

He called on the UN to inform Papua New Guinea’s development partners “and other international friends” of the latest situation. Aid should be coordinated through the disaster management center, he added.

(With contributions from the agency)