Villagers near Mt Tubiri in Mendi face danger of landslide

By PETER WARI
PEOPLE living in four villages at the foot of Mt Tubiri near Mendi town in Southern Highlands are facing the danger of a major landslide if the rain continues, a councillor says.
Last weekend, Sunda villagers watched as a landslide covered a nearby road.
Sunda ward councillor Paki Andaso told The National that if the rain continued, a landslide could destroy homes and properties all the way to Mendi River. He said the villagers might have to be evacuated.
The area is near quarry developed by the Chinese Overseas Construction Engineering Limited during the construction of the Mendi-Kandep Road in 2012.
He said according to site investigation reports for the environmental damage, the soil had become unstable and could result in a huge landslip.
Southern Highlands Department of Works project manager Nelson Wanis in a report to the company dated May 6, 2014, stated that the site investigation report on the environmental damages was true.
Former acting provincial disaster coordinator Martin Pat in his report to the National Disaster Centre requested for the relocation of the people.
He said the quarry was a time-bomb ready to go off.
Andaso said the villagers were in fear that continuous rain may trigger bigger landslides that maybe devastating.