CARE Australia is saddened to confirm reports of a landslide which occurred early on Friday morning of 24 May in Enga Province, in the northern region of Papua New Guinea. The landslide which occurred at 3am PNG time in Yambali Village, took place in a remote area.

Highway access near Yambali Village is obstructed, which will likely take considerable time to clear. This will hinder assessment and relief efforts. Despite the challenges a team including the Provincial Disaster Center, Department of Health, Police and Defence Forces, have reached the site to further assess the situation. CARE is in contact with the team, and stands ready to support the government-led response as appropriate. While the area is not densely populated, our concern is that the death toll could be disproportionately high.

CARE has worked in Enga over the years in humanitarian, development and peace-building projects. Such work forms part of CARE’s broader work throughout the highlands region of Papua New Guinea, across natural disaster preparedness and response, health, gender equality and livelihood promotion.