UN raises Papua New Guinea landslide death toll estimate to 670

More than 670 people are believed to have died after a massive landslide obliterated a village in Papua New Guinea, a UN official told AFP on Sunday.

“There are an estimated 150-plus houses now buried” said UN migration agency official Serhan Aktoprak, adding that “670-plus people are assumed dead”.

“The situation is terrible with the land still sliding. The water is running and this is creating a massive risk for eveyrone involved,” added Aktoprak, who is based in Port Moresby.

More than 1,000 people had been displaced from the once-bustling village, Aktoprak said, with food gardens and water supplies almost completely wiped out.

“People are using digging sticks, spades, large agricultural forks to remove the bodies buried under the soil.”

Source: AFP

--Agencies