Almost 700 dead. This is the estimate of victims made by a UN agency after the devastating landslide in northern Papua New Guinea. They estimate that there are more than 150 houses buried underground, but they warn that these figures may increase. And the characteristics of the terrain make it difficult to search for survivors and rescue teams can barely enter the area buried by rocks.

However, the UN delegation in Papua New Guinea clarified this Sunday to EFE by email that the number of deaths confirmed so far by the emergency response team is five. All these corpses have been recovered in Kaokalam village, 600 kilometers from the country’s capital, Port Moresby. “The team has informed us that it is difficult to confirm the real number [de fallecidos] as search and rescue efforts continue,” said Kesang Phuntsho, head of the United Nations office in Papua New Guinea.

In addition to the five bodies recovered, the UN delegation has indicated in a report that there are an unknown number of injured, “including 20 women and children.” The official statement from the international organization is also more cautious regarding the number of houses buried by the avalanche, which at the moment figure between 50 and 60as well as a school, a church, orchards and vehicles.

This document also indicates that the disaster area remains dangerous due to the risk of new avalanchesso they are working on the evacuation of the survivors, about 1,250, according to the head of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Papua New Guinea, Serhan Aktoprak,

“My companions had to escape from the place due to the increasing danger, since rocks keep falling non-stop and the earth continues to slide,” Aktoprak continued, adding that this, together with the large amount of earth that had already fallen, is putting pressure on the houses in the area, making evacuation necessary.

Around 4,000 people officially live in the area where the avalanche occurred, although authorities They estimate that the number of people affected is highersince the town in which it occurred is a place where locals fleeing conflicts and tribal clashes in nearby villages take refuge.

Much of the village of Kaokalam was buried by a layer of between six and eight meters of rocks and stones and the avalanche affected an area of ​​more than 200 square kilometers, including about 150 kilometers of the province’s main highway, making rescue efforts and helping survivors difficult.

Besides, other access sections to the village are closed due to previous landslides, so access is only possible by helicopter or off-road vehicle. In fact, images from the site of the catastrophe shared on social networks show a vast area of ​​rocks and earth torn from a hill, as well as neighbors collecting their belongings and exploring the area buried by the landslide in search of survivors.

The affected area It usually suffers from heavy rains and floodsand landslides are not unusual in the country, in which, despite the wealth in natural resources, a large part of its more than nine million inhabitants lives in extreme poverty and is isolated due to a deficit in communications and infrastructure, especially in remote places like the current disaster.