Rescue Teams Don't Expect to Find Survivors in Papua New Guinea Landslide

This handout photo taken and received on May 29, 2024 courtesy of Nickson Pakea, president of Porgera Chamber of Commerce and Industry, shows locals digging at the site of a landslide at Yambali village in the region of Maip Mulitaka, in Papua New Guinea's Enga Province. (Photo by NICKSON PAKEA / PRESIDENT OF PORGERA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY / AFP)
This handout photo taken and received on May 29, 2024 courtesy of Nickson Pakea, president of Porgera Chamber of Commerce and Industry, shows locals digging at the site of a landslide at Yambali village in the region of Maip Mulitaka, in Papua New Guinea's Enga Province. (Photo by NICKSON PAKEA / PRESIDENT OF PORGERA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY / AFP)
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Rescue Teams Don't Expect to Find Survivors in Papua New Guinea Landslide

This handout photo taken and received on May 29, 2024 courtesy of Nickson Pakea, president of Porgera Chamber of Commerce and Industry, shows locals digging at the site of a landslide at Yambali village in the region of Maip Mulitaka, in Papua New Guinea's Enga Province. (Photo by NICKSON PAKEA / PRESIDENT OF PORGERA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY / AFP)
This handout photo taken and received on May 29, 2024 courtesy of Nickson Pakea, president of Porgera Chamber of Commerce and Industry, shows locals digging at the site of a landslide at Yambali village in the region of Maip Mulitaka, in Papua New Guinea's Enga Province. (Photo by NICKSON PAKEA / PRESIDENT OF PORGERA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY / AFP)

Papua New Guinea ruled out finding survivors under the rubble of a massive landslide on Thursday, with the exact number of dead under almost two stories of debris and mud still unknown but ranging from hundreds to thousands.
Heavy equipment and aid have been slow to arrive because of the treacherous mountain terrain, a damaged bridge on the main road, and tribal unrest in the area, Reuters reported.
"No bodies are expected to be alive under the debris at this point, so it's a full recovery operation to recover any human remains," Enga province disaster committee chairperson Sandis Tsaka told Reuters.
Officials are still trying to pinpoint how many people are buried under parts of a mountain which collapsed onto the Yambali village in the Enga region around 3 a.m. last Friday.
Without a current census – the last credible one was done in 2000 – officials are relying on incomplete voter records and checks with local leaders to reach an estimate on total deaths.
More than 2,000 people may have been buried alive, according to the PNG government. A UN estimate put the death toll at around 670, while a local businessman and former official told Reuters it was closer to 160.
Tsaka said the government was still unsure about the death toll though it would be a "significant number."
"It could be anywhere from hundreds to 2,000. I wouldn't totally rule 2,000 out because of the uncertainty about how many people were (there) at the time but I can't give you a definitive answer till we complete the social mapping," he said.
Of the six bodies recovered so far, two lived outside the disaster area, Tsaka said, reinforcing officials' view that there was lots of movement between communities.
Dozens of soldiers, engineers, geology experts and public health officials have reached the site, Tsaka said. Rescue teams are planning to use heavy machinery from Thursday, after unstable ground delayed its use earlier.
Thousands of residents are on alert for potential evacuation in case the landslide shifts further downhill.



Ukraine Urges Investigation into Alleged Russian Chemical Weapons Use

The logo of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is seen during a special session in the Hague, Netherlands June 26, 2018. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
The logo of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is seen during a special session in the Hague, Netherlands June 26, 2018. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
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Ukraine Urges Investigation into Alleged Russian Chemical Weapons Use

The logo of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is seen during a special session in the Hague, Netherlands June 26, 2018. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
The logo of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is seen during a special session in the Hague, Netherlands June 26, 2018. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo

Ukraine asked the global chemical weapons watchdog in The Hague on Tuesday to investigate the alleged use of banned toxic munitions by Russia against its forces.

A request to establish an investigation was submitted by Kyiv to the governing body of the organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

It followed Dutch and German intelligence agencies on Friday saying they had evidence of widespread use of illegal weapons by Russia along the frontline.

Agency chief Fernando Arias said in a statement to the OPCW's Executive Council that in view of the alleged frequent use of dangerous chemical agents his office would step up monitoring of activity along the Russia-Ukraine conflict line, Reuters reportf.

He invited Ukraine to discuss its proposal with member states, a majority of whom may be needed to support such an investigation.

The OPCW created a similar team in 2018 to examine accusations of chemical weapons use in Syria. The Investigation and Identification Team found that Syrian government forces and Islamic State militants had used banned chemical weapons in the civil war that began in March 2011. The United States first accused Russia in May last year of using chloropicrin, a chemical compound more toxic than riot control agents and first used by Germany during World War One. The OPCW, a disarmament agency in The Hague with 193 member states, said last year that initial accusations levelled by both countries at each other were "insufficiently substantiated".

Both sides have denied using chemical weapons in the conflict, which escalated when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

"Ukraine hereby requests the Director-General of the OPCW to take steps towards establishing an independent and impartial mechanism (to) investigate cases of alleged use of chemical weapons in Ukraine," a copy of the request shared with Reuters said.

It asked that the mechanism be empowered to "collect additional evidence and identify perpetrators, organisers, sponsors of such use."

It was submitted at the beginning of four days of closed-door meetings by the 41-country Executive Council of the OPCW. The disarmament body had no immediate comment on the request.

At least three Ukrainian deaths have been tied to chemical weapons use, the Dutch Military Intelligence Agency said, while more than 2,500 people injured on the battlefield reported chemical weapons-related symptoms to Ukrainian health authorities.

On Monday, Britain targeted two Russian individuals and one Russian entity as part of its chemical weapons sanctions regime, in its latest effort to punish Moscow for the war in Ukraine.