Woman’s body retrieved, laid to rest

THE body of an elderly woman retrieved from a landslide in Mendi, Southern Highlands, was laid to rest on New Year’s Eve, says a relative.
However, the bodies of a mother and her three children believed to be buried by surging debris, mostly rocks, are yet to be recovered.
Relative Reuben Perry said the mother and the three children were sleeping in another house while the elderly woman was sleeping with two young girls who managed to escape.
He said the elderly woman had been trapped under a rock but had told the two girls to leave her and save themselves.
Perry said the debris, including mud and rocks, was several metres deep and rescuers digging for bodies had faced great difficulty and needed machinery such as an excavator to assist their efforts.
He said makeshift shelters had been erected for relatives who had gathered at the site to mourn the dead and missing.
Another relative, Alvin Gia Huk, said the family of the missing mother and children had worked every day since the landslide to find the bodies.
He said a team from the provincial disaster office had visited the area and assessed the situation.
Huk said deputy provincial administrator Henry Happen had made a commitment of K100,000 for the re-location exercise.
“The villagers lost food gardens and drinking-water sources, they are currently being assisted by their relatives but will need immediate assistance,” he said.
Huk said the Kumul Petroleum Holdings Ltd and International Organisation for Migration also pledged their support to help in the search for the bodies and re-location of the displaced Topa villagers in the Karinz local level government area.