The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Papua New Guinea landslide response hampered by complex conditions
Efforts to rescue those impacted by the deadly landslide in Papua New Guinea that has claimed an estimated 2,000 lives have been complicated by fears that the waterlogged ground could shift again. “We don’t want a disaster on top of the current one,” said Itayi Viriri, UN migration agency (IOM) regional spokesperson for Asia and the Pacific, on Tuesday.
Reports from the National Disaster Center indicate that up to 2,000 people were buried under mud and rubble after a massive landslide last Friday at 3am “when most people were probably sleeping”, said Itayi Viriri, UN migration agency (IOM) regional spokesperson for Asia and the Pacific.
The landslide engulfed the area, burying homes, infrastructure and farmland under up to eight metres of soil and debris. Only six bodies have been recovered so far.
Speaking to journalists in Geneva from Bangkok via Zoom, the IOM spokesperson highlighted the vulnerability of those affected by the disaster: “A lot of the people who have been affected by this landslide actually moved to this area after escaping tribal conflicts in other parts of the province of Enga. So these are people who are already displaced who are now having to move to other locations.”
Dramatic video from the scene of the disaster showed locals and rescue workers struggling to shift a wall of mud and rubble using shovels. But safe access continues to be extremely difficult. “Just today, this morning, one of the main thoroughfares leading to this area, a bridge there collapsed. And now they have to fix it to make sure that all the convoys that are going to provide support have access.”
The UN agency warned that with so many bodies still to be recovered from beneath the rubble, there are concerns that underground water flowing down the mountain will contaminate local drinking water sources.
Most of the area’s sources of clean drinking water are now inaccessible because of the landslide.
“What is needed now, obviously, is access to clean water; quite a lot of the water that normally the community would access is already under rubble,” Mr. Viriri said. “So, providing that along with, food, of course, clothing, shelter items, kitchen utensils, anything that will try and alleviate the hardship that the people are facing right now.”
Heavy rains continue to hamper the relief effort, however. “This landslide that happened on Friday had not happened before in this area so it’s hard to say if it will happen again,” the IOM spokesperson said. “The soil is unsteady…and you’ve seen some of the videos of the water coming out in some of the rubble, so that makes it even more so. Yes, unfortunately we have to consider that it might happen again.”
ends
STORY: Papua New Guinea landslide update - IOM
TRT: 2’23”
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 28 MAY 2024 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Exterior wide: UN Geneva flag alley
2. Wide: Press conference room, UN Geneva.
3. SOUNDBITE (English) – Itayi Viriri, UN migration agency (IOM) regional spokesperson for Asia and the Pacific (from Bangkok via Zoom): “The National Disaster Center has estimated that up to 2000 people are still buried under the rubble after the massive landslide that took place on Friday at 3am when most people were probably sleeping.”
4. Wide: journalists seated and TV camera operators in press room.
5. SOUNDBITE (English) – Itayi Viriri, UN migration agency (IOM) regional spokesperson for Asia and the Pacific (from Bangkok via Zoom) “A lot of the people who have been affected by this landslide actually moved to this area after escaping tribal conflicts in other parts of the province of Enga. So, these are people who are already displaced who are now having to move to other locations.”
6. Medium: journalists in the Press room.
7. SOUNDBITE (English) – Itayi Viriri, UN migration agency (IOM) regional spokesperson for Asia and the Pacific (from Bangkok via Zoom): “What is needed now, obviously, is access to clean water; quite a lot of the water that normally the community would access is already under rubble. So, providing that along with, food, of course, clothing, shelter items, kitchen utensils, anything that will try and alleviate the hardship that the people are facing right now.”
8. Medium: Journalists seated in the Press room.
9. SOUNDBITE (English) – Itayi Viriri, UN migration agency (IOM) regional spokesperson for Asia and the Pacific (from Bangkok via Zoom): “And the reality also is that access to the area for, you know, Government and other agencies is quite difficult. Just today, this morning, one of the main thoroughfares leading to this area, a bridge there collapsed. And now they have to fix it to make sure that all the convoys that are going to provide support have access.”
10. Medium: journalists seated amid microphones.
11. SOUNDBITE (English): Itayi Viriri, UN migration agency (IOM) regional spokesperson for Asia and the Pacific (from Bangkok via Zoom): “This landslide that happened on Friday had not happened before in this area so it’s hard to say if it will happen again. But with the continued heavy rains in the vicinity obviously everything is – the soil is unsteady – and all the rubble is still (seeing) some movement and you’ve seen some of the videos of the water coming out in some of the rubble, so that makes it even more so. (So) yes, unfortunately we have to consider that it might happen again.”
12. Medium shot: Journalist in the Press room.
Additional images from PNG here:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1qvqnOum0R2Lg0FzyeHnXRvoRbKCLDu4Z
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | UNRWA , UNOPS , UNIS
2
6
1
2
Edited News , Press Conferences , Images | HRC
At UN, war crimes probe pledges to continue to work for all impacted by Hamas-Israel conflict
As President Trump launched the international Board of Peace plan for Gaza on Thursday, top independent rights experts tasked by the UN Human Rights Council with investigating grave abuses linked to the Hamas-Israel war pledged to continue their work seeking justice and accountability for all.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights Office Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said Tuesday UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk was outraged by the repeated large-scale attacks by the Russian Federation on energy infrastructure in Ukraine.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN warns against repeating abuses in South Kordofan that occurred in El Fasher.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , UNICEF
Mozambique floods heighten disease, malnutrition risks – UN agencies
Catastrophic flooding in Mozambique is causing massive disruption to lives and livelihoods across the country, increasing the risk of disease and exposing urban areas to crocodiles, UN humanitarians warned on Tuesday.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | OCHA
Yemen: Children are dying and it’s going to get worse, aid veteran warns
In Yemen, renewed political instability threatens and economic woes linked to the war to complicate the already difficult task of helping vulnerable people suffering from deepening hunger, illness and displacement, the UN's top aid official there said on Monday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF , IFRC
Ukraine: Families in ‘survival mode’ amid Russian strikes and -18°C cold
Families across Ukraine are in “constant survival mode” amid ongoing waves of Russian missile and drone strikes that have left blocks without power for days at a time, while temperatures plunge to a deadly -18°C (-0.4°F), the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
At the bi-weekly press conference in Geneva, UN Human Rights Spokesperson Jeremy Laurence urges Iranian authorities to end violent repression and calls for accountability.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF
Gaza: A ceasefire that ‘still buries children’ is not enough, says UNICEF
Airstrikes, drone strikes and hypothermia are among the lethal conditions prevailing in Gaza despite the ceasefire, with more than 100 children killed since early October, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
At the UN bi-weekly press conference in Geneva, UN Human Rights Spokesperson Marta Hurtado commented on the widespread repression and intimidation against political opposition ahead of the general elections in Uganda.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , UNICEF
Aid agencies marked 1,000 days of war in Sudan on Friday with a grim reminder that the conflict has created the world’s biggest hunger crisis and largest displacement emergency. Every day, civilians have been “paying the price for a war they did not choose”, said the UN aid coordination office, OCHA.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
Ravina Shamdasani, UN Human Rights spokesperson, made the following comments at the bi-weekly press briefing of the United Nations on the United States’ intervention in Venezuela.