Rescuers struggle to assess PNG quake damage

SYDNEY - Whole villages were flattened and water sources spoiled by a powerful earthquake that killed at least 20 people, residents said on Wednesday, as rescuers struggled to reach the hardest-hit areas in Papua New Guinea's remote, mountainous highlands.

The PNG Post-Courier newspaper on Tuesday said more than 30 people may have died, but on Wednesday it reported that only 14 victims had been confirmed, in the Southern Highlands and Hela province.

All of the victims were killed when their houses collapsed as they slept, it said.