Daulo landslip affects traffic

TRAFFIC came to a standstill at Daulo Pass along the Highlands Highway in Eastern Highlandsfollowing a landslip around 2am on Wednesday.
Most PMV buses were stranded on both sides forcing passengers to walk through the rubbles to catch PMVs on the other side.
Passenger Tobah Robert traveling from Goroka to Chimbu said locals managed to clear one lane and were charging K100 for vehicles to pass through.
On Tuesday, traffic along the Watabung section in Eastern Highlands was cut off for the whole day.
Due to the continuous heavy rain, loose soil moved down the hillside leaving, trees, plants and rocks on the road, according to Watabung community spokesman Robert Bulik.
Bulik said it was fortunate that there were no family houses and gardens nearby. They would have lost lives if there were houses along the path of the debris.
“It was only mudslide that rolled down the hill side and ended on the road. The locals volunteered to clear the debris making a one-way access for light vehicles to pass through,” he said.
Bulik said Watabung community leaders moblised locals who voluntarily opened up access and allowed traffic to pass through on Tuesday afternoon.
Watabung police sergeant Erick Kakhi led a team of Asaro highway patrol unit to work with Bulik and his community. They used a front end loader machine to clear the mudslide debris to restore normal traffic.