New Zealand geographical authorities warned on Friday that additional floods will likely be a problem in the area where a rock fell onto a small town in Papua New Guinea two weeks ago as officials put an end to search and rescue work.
The federal government reports that more than 2, 000 people have been buried alive, and a U.N. measure places the death toll at around 670, but it is questionable how many people died in the enormous flood in PNG’s Enga place on May 24.
So far, only 11 bodies have been found.
Concerns about the ground’s stability, not just in the landslide but also on either side, were raised in a report sent by New Zealand geotechnical engineers to Papua New Guinea on Thursday.
The geotechnical engineers and Aaron Waterreus, the leader of the Fire and Emergency New Zealand ( FENZ ) team, said in a press conference on Friday that” we believe that there is real potential for further landslides to occur in the near or medium term.”
The landslide, which covers roughly 14 hectares ( 35 acres ), is of such a size that it cannot be stopped from moving and could go on for months or even years, according to FENZ geotechnical engineer Jan Kupec.
He claimed that the rock avalanche was likely caused by an older, reactivated landslide, and that concerns were raised now that the mountain’s debris would be liquefied and the landslide would be once more caused by monsoon rains.
Due to concerns about further earth movement, Enga Provincial Government announced on Thursday that there would be large-scale evacuations of additional locations close to the landslide.
The area has been designated as a mass burial site and the government has stopped looking for bodies.
More than 7, 200 people were displaced by the landslide, according to the UN International Organization for Migration, and the number may rise.
Heavy equipment and aid have been slow to arrive due to the region’s treacherous terrain and tribal unrest, and PNG government officials have previously ruled out finding survivors beneath the rubble.
According to the IOM, the disaster site will be quarantined and only accessible to those who can get sick from decaying bodies.
