Satellite images reveal the extent of damage caused by a landslide in Papua New Guinea.
Satellite images reveal a massive portion of the land in Enga's mountainous region being ripped apart.
Photos from Maxar Technologies/Reuters depict the aftermath of the landslide in Yambali village, located in Papua New Guinea's Enga Province. On the ground, the extent of the destroyed landscape can be better appreciated. Officials mentioned that more than 150 houses in Yambali were buried in debris on Sunday, with estimates suggesting around 2,000 individuals might be buried as well.
The landslide struck Kaokalam village, roughly 600 kilometers (372 miles) northwest of the nation's capital, Port Moresby, around 3 a.m. local time on Friday (1 p.m. Thursday ET). Its aftermath resembled a scar in the mountainside left by a massive debris flow.
Satellite images show the landslide in Yambali village, Enga Province, Papua New Guinea. Maxar Technologies/Reuters
Residents in the village were caught by surprise as the landslide plowed into their houses while they slept. Efforts to reach the isolated community have been hindered by its remote location and the challenges inherent in aiding one of the continent's poorest countries.
Sandis Tsaka of the National Disaster Center explained that the area remained unstable and that smaller landslides were occurring, thus endangering rescue team members. The government has ordered nearly 7,000 people to relocate from the reach of potential future landslides.
Evit Kambu reported that she had lost over a dozen family members. She stated that both her relatives and other members of the community are in mourning, unable to locate many bodies due to the sheer volume of rocks and mud covering the area. "I am the landowner here... but I cannot retrieve the bodies, so I am standing here helplessly," she told Reuters.
Papua New Guinea is home to over 10 million people. Its challenging topography and limited road network make accessing the impacted region a difficult task.
Miok Michael, a local community leader, speculated that the death toll is likely quite high. "People are gathering and mourning. There seem to be few survivors. People have been digging since day one, but they still cannot locate the bodies due to the overwhelming amount of rocks," he told CNN.
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Despite the devastating landslide in Papua New Guinea, international aid efforts have been limited due to the country's remote location in Asia.
The distressing event in Papua New Guinea serves as a stark reminder of the vulnerability of many communities across the world to natural disasters.
Source: edition.cnn.com
