Papua New Guinea Landslide Burys 2,000 People Alive, New Zealand's Geologist Warns Susulan

Illustration of heavy equipment cleaning landslide material that closes roads. (Antaranews)

JAKARTA - New Zealand geologists warn of a follow-up disaster amid the decision to end the SAR operation to rescue landslide victims in Papua New Guinea.

New Zealand's Fire and Emergency Disaster Team (FENZ) consisting of geotechnical engineers sent to Papua New Guinea said the potential for further landslides given the stability of the soil, not only in affected locations, but also on both sides of the landslide.

"We believe that there is a real potential for further landslides in the near future or medium-sized," said FENZ team leader Aaron Waterreus, at a press conference, Friday, June 7, quoted by Reuters.

FENZ geotechnical engineer Jan Kupec added the potential for further landslides covers about 14 hectares for months to years. The scale of the incident is huge and the possibility to stop it is not there.

This further landslide is expected to hit villages in the Enga area again. The mountainous area was the worst affected by landslides on May 24.

The Papua New Guinea government said that around 2,000 people were buried alive in the disaster. This figure is different from the one released by the United Nations as many as 670 victims.

So far, from the SAR operation carried out, only 11 bodies of victims buried by landslides have been found.