The president of the Porgera Women in Business Association, Elizabeth Laruma told ABC many houses were demolished by the huge slip.
”It has occurred when people were still asleep in the early hours and the entire village has gone down,” Laruma said.
”From what I can presume, it’s about 100-plus people who are buried beneath the ground.”
Photos and videos uploaded to social media show sights of mass destruction.
Boulders, mounds of dirt and other debris have come down onto the village.
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has spoken about New Zealand being “saddened by the significant loss of life”.
“Our thoughts are with the families of the victims, and the Government and people of Papua New Guinea as they respond to this tragedy,” Peters posted on X tonight.
“New Zealand stands ready to consider any requests for assistance from Papua New Guinea as it deals with the situation.”
Some photos and videos circulating on social media show locals desperately carrying out people who had been trapped in their crushed homes by the debris.
“When this road is being closed off – and I don’t know how long it’s going to take – it’s going to have a really big impact on the people out there in terms of goods, fuel and services,” Laruma told the ABC.
”It’s going to have a big impact on the lives of the people of Porgera and the mine as well.”
- Additional reporting, NZ Herald
