Massive Landslide Kills Over 670 in Papua New Guinea

More than 670 people are believed to be dead after a massive landslide in Papua New Guinea, a UN official said as aid workers and villagers braved perilous conditions in their search for survivors.

The once-bustling hillside village in Enga province was almost completely obliterated when the landslide struck in the early hours, burying scores of homes and the people sleeping inside them.

"There are an estimated 150-plus houses now buried," said UN migration agency representative Serhan Aktoprak, adding that "670-plus people are assumed dead".

"The situation is terrible with the land still sliding. The water is running and this is creating a massive risk for everyone involved," added Aktoprak, who oversees teams of emergency workers from Port Moresby.

The unforgiving terrain, damaged roads and an outbreak of tribal violence nearby have seriously hamstrung efforts to get help into the disaster zone.

More than two days after the landslide rumbled down the face of Mount Mungalo, mud-caked villagers in bare feet are still searching for their loved ones using shovels, axes and other makeshift tools.

More than 1,000 people have been displaced by the catastrophe, aid agencies estimated, with food gardens and water supplies almost completely wiped out.

Aid agencies and local leaders initially feared between 100 to 300 people had perished underneath the mud and rubble spanning almost four football fields in length.

Five bodies and the leg of a sixth had been pulled from the debris.

This number is expected to start climbing in the coming days as diggers and other heavy machinery speed up the painstaking excavations.

Located on the side of densely forested Mount Mungalo, the village was home to a transient population that could swell to more than 4,000 people.

It served as a trading post for the alluvial miners who panned for gold in the highlands region.