PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea: At least five individuals lost their lives and an estimated 1,000 homes were destroyed when a magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck flood-stricken northern Papua New Guinea, officials said on Monday as disaster crews poured into the region.
East Sepik Governor Allan Bird stated, “Approximately 1,000 homes have already been destroyed,” further noting that emergency teams were still evaluating the extent of damage caused by the tremor, which “impacted most areas of the province.”
The earthquake hit early Sunday morning, compounding the challenges faced by numerous villages along the Sepik River, already grappling with severe flooding.
According to Provincial Police Commander Christopher Tamari, five fatalities have been officially recorded, but the actual death toll “may be higher.”
Images captured in the aftermath of the earthquake depicted wooden dwellings collapsing into the floodwaters that had engulfed the region.
Papua New Guinea encounters earthquakes regularly because it sits atop the seismic “Ring of Fire,” an area characterized by intense tectonic movement stretching across Southeast Asia and the Pacific region. While such seismic events typically do not cause extensive damage in the sparsely populated mountainous regions, they can trigger devastating landslides.
With a significant portion of the nation’s nine million inhabitants residing in rural areas beyond major urban centres, rescue efforts are often impeded by the rugged terrain and lack of well-developed infrastructure. —APP
