SYDNEY, May 28. /TASS/. More than 2,000 people could still be trapped under the rubble after a landslide in the central part of Papua New Guinea, Radio New Zealand reports, referring to the National Disaster Center.
The agency noted that 670 residents of the village of Yambali have been reported dead as a result of the landslide, which struck on Friday, May 24. About 2,000 more people are believed to remain under the rubble. Rescuers managed to find three people alive, and the bodies of six more were removed from under the collapsed buildings. At least 150 residential houses remain under a layer of soil and stones 6 to 8 meters thick.
The National Disaster Center reported that the landslide is the largest recorded in the last 6 years. To help deal with the aftermath, the country's government has set aside 500,000 kina (about 130.000 dollars).
"The situation remains unstable as the Earth continues to shift slowly, posing ongoing danger to both the rescue teams and survivors alike," the statement of the government of Papua New Guinea reads. Residents in 250 nearby houses have been evacuated.
A massive landslide struck the villages of Kaokalam and Yambali, located in the central part of the country, around 3:00 a.m. local time on Friday. More than 150 residential houses were in the disaster zone. According to preliminary data, more than 670 people were killed in the landslide, and about 2,000 more people remain under the rubble, as their fate remains unknown.