Five dead as PMV overturns

By PISAI GUMAR
FIVE passengers died in a road accident near the Markham Valley High School, Mutzing, along the Highlands highway.
Four died on the spot while one was pronounced dead on arrival at the Mutzing health centre.
The four were identified as Samson Pini, 25, from East Sepik; Peter Bedikai, 39, from Madang; Edwin Unpeng, 41, from 4-Mile in Lae; and Joshua Yanga,
from Markham.
The fifth, an employee from Kurumbukari, has not been identified.
The accident occurred near the Markham school around 4.30pm on Tuesday when a 15-seater bus operating on the highway was travelling to Lae from Madang.
About 300m from the Mutzing station, a tyre burst causing the vehicle to overturn and hit a tree.
Health staff at Mutzing, who requested anonymity, said among the nine passengers who sustained fractures and injuries were two students in Grades 8 and 10, a pastor from the Assembly of God church and Lae Biscuit Company’s popular comedian Alphonse “Ka­nage” Dirau.
They were treated and later taken to the Angau Memorial Hospital in Lae for further examination.
The health centre has 23 staff including health extension and nursing officers with community health workers.
The government has approved K6 million to upgrade the status of Mutzing as a rural hospital with a specialist doctor and equipment.