PORT MORESBY — Rescue teams in Papua New Guinea continued their intensive search on Wednesday for approximately 2,000 individuals still unaccounted for after a series of severe landslides struck Enga province. The landslides, which occurred early Friday morning, devastated residential communities, burying homes, critical infrastructure, and agricultural lands beneath layers of soil and debris reaching up to eight meters deep.
According to Philippines News Agency, local residents have been combing through the aftermath with basic tools and their bare hands in a desperate effort to locate survivors and retrieve bodies. The disaster prompted international aid, with Australia sending two aircraft loaded with emergency supplies and a 16-member team specializing in disaster relief to support the ongoing rescue operations.
The International Organization for Migration described the event as one of the most lethal disasters in Papua New Guinea's recent history, highlighting the rapid devastation that left thousands homeless and in dire need of assistance. Serhan Aktoprak, IOM's chief of mission in the country, reported that over 150 houses were completely engulfed by earth in Yambali village alone, emphasizing the extensive impact of the catastrophe.