More than 2,000 people buried in landslide in Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea and international authorities estimate the number of people buried in a landslide that occurred on the island last Friday to be more than 2,000. The government of the oceanic island country communicated this figure to the United Nations this Monday.

According to the authorities, the natural disaster devastated a village in the province of Enga. A landslide caused a hillside to collapse and fell on a populated area. The people who were in the area were "buried alive," according to local authorities cited by AFP.

The main road leading to the area was also "completely blocked." According to local authorities, dirt and rocks continue to move in the area. Nearly 250 homes in a perimeter around the epicenter of the disaster were evacuated.

On Sunday, the United Nations, which has an office in Papua New Guinea's capital, Port Moresby, estimated the deaths at least 670 people. However, on Tuesday, the UN stated that it considers it "unlikely" that there are survivors in the aftermath of the natural disaster. According to the same sources, quoted by AFP, what was originally intended to be a rescue operation later turned into a body recovery mission.

The poor condition of the roads in the region made it difficult for rescue teams to reach the site. There are about 7,000 displaced people in the Enga region and because of the damage to the roads, it is estimated that about 30,000 people are isolated.