Dozens killed, hundreds injured in PNG earthquake
More than 30 people have reportedly died as a result of a 7.5-magnitude earthquake and strong aftershocks that earlier struck the heart of Papua New Guinea (PNG), with details also emerging of vast damage.
The strong earthquake hit some 90 kilometers south of the PNG’s Porgera Valley at a depth of 35 kilometers at about 3:45 am Monday (1745 GMT Sunday), but no reports of casualties or damage were available then.
On Tuesday, however, local press outlets reported that at least 13 people had died in the Southern Highlands capital of Mendi, and 18 more were believed to have lost their lives in nearby Kutubu and Bosave.
An estimated 300 people were also reported injured.
At least two strong aftershocks also shook the rugged region, measuring at 6.0 and 6.3.
Meanwhile, phone lines were mostly cut, and landslides, sinkholes, and considerable destruction of properties were reported.
“The scale of damage, from information we are getting from the ground, is quite extensive,” said Governor of Hela Province Philip Undialu, speaking in the PNG’s capital of Port Moresby.
Governor Undialu further said that there had been nearly 19 landslides between Mendi and the town of Mount Hagen, adding, “Our police station, courthouse, hospital... even private houses have been ripped apart or sunk into the ground. It’s going to be a massive recovery exercise.”
Meanwhile, a government assessment team was scheduled to fly into the region on Tuesday, and the PNG’s military was mobilized to help restore services and infrastructure, according to a statement released by the government’s Chief Secretary Isaac Lupari.
“Information will be provided as this is made available from assessment teams in the area,” the statement added.
A Mendi resident told local daily Post Courier that the earthquake had destroyed the area beyond recognition.
“We barely recognized anything around us [after the earthquake]; nothing was familiar to us. The house or tree that was there wasn’t there anymore,” Agnes Kep said.
The region is rich in oil and gas. ExxonMobil PNG said buildings at its Hides Gas Conditioning Plant had been damaged but its entire staff was “safe and accounted for.”
Australian resources company Oil Search also announced on Monday that its operations in the area were being shut down as a precaution and for damage assessment and that no injuries had afflicted its staff so far.
Earthquakes are common in the PNG, which sits on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, a hotspot of seismic activity.
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