About 100 feared dead during huge landslide in PNG: media

SYDNEY - The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported on Friday that about 100 people were feared dead after a huge landslide battered a remote village in Papua New Guinea.

According to ABC, the incident occurred at around 3:00 a.m. local time in Kaokalam Village in Enga Province, located over 600 km northwest of Port Moresby.

Residents told ABC that the death toll rose above 100, but the figure has yet to be confirmed by local authorities.

"It has occurred when people were still asleep in the early hours and the entire village has gone down," Elizabeth Laruma, president of the Porgera Women in Business Association, was quoted as saying.

"From what I can presume, it's about 100-plus people who are buried beneath the ground," Laruma added.