Papua New Guinea landslide:​More than 2,000 people buried alive; several building destroyed

The national disaster center of Papua New Guinea on Monday said that a deadly landslide that occurred on Friday in a secluded village located in the country's northern region caused major destruction and more than 2,000 people were buried alive.

Buildings, Medical facilities, food gardens along with houses, several small businesses, a guest house, school, and a gas station, were buried.

Search and rescue operations faced significant challenges in rural Papua New Guinea on Saturday, following a massive landslide that buried villages and claimed several lives.

Nearly 4,000 residents residing in three villages were affected by the landslide. By Sunday, only five bodies and a leg of a sixth victim had been recovered.

Emergency responders in Papua New Guinea were relocating survivors to safer areas on Sunday. This action was necessary due to the threat posed by tons of unstable earth and tribal warfare, which is prevalent in the country's Highlands.

Justine McMahon, country director of the humanitarian agency CARE International, said that military is leading the rescue operation in moving survivors to "more stable ground' on an immediate priority. Authorities are also providing them with food, water and shelter.

McMahon said that there are other health facilities in the region. The provincial government is dispatching health workers, and the World Health Organization is also mobilizing staff. "There will be some support, but it's such a spread-out area that I think it will be quite a challenging situation," McMahon said.