Helping Sialum

[quote]Landslide kills 19 people

By FRANK RAI

A family is counting its luck after all its members survived a massive landslide that killed 19 of their relatives between
the gorges of Firangka in the Sialum district of Morobe Province.
The family of five survived by metres when the landslide swept down the mountainside and engulfed six houses, missing their
hamlet in Zongefifi in the early hours of Monday.
The survivors were still in a state of shock and mourning when visited by Morobe Disaster and Emergency Service officers
yesterday.
It only left this single home with its five family members to survive the terrible disaster.
Locals retrieved three bodies, two male and one female while the other 16 bodies were still buried.
The landslide started from the top of the mountain, slid down the gorge for about half a kilometre with debris strewn over
200 metres wide before dropping down the steep terrain.
Yesterday, Disaster and Emergency officials flew into the area to assess the damages and make arrangements for relief
assistance and also listen to stories of their losess.
A former primary school teacher, Bobby Toby told the team that relatives and family members from the village were stricken
with grief and sorrow and waited for advice from the provincial disaster office.
Zongefifi is accessible by walking inland for three hours from Sialum on the Morobe north coast.
After the visit, deputy administrator Mr Patilias Gamato told reporters that a team of medical officers, police and
disaster people would be flown into the area today.
Mr Gamato said some relief supplies would also be arranged which will hopefully reach the disaster area by tomorrow.
“The landslide is massive, half of the mountain has slid and we cannot do much. We will only provide some relief assistance
and prepare the coroner’s report,” Mr Gamato said.
Mr Gamato said the landslide was caused by water underneath the coronus limestone which had built up and caused the ground
to become unstable, causing a massive slip.
He also warned that the months of May, June and July were a time of continuous rainfall in the province and those
travelling by sea, living along river banks and under mountainous terrains should take extra precaution because of the rain
in the province in recent weeks."



(My concern) To all the leading Morobeans in the US and pnginusa to stand with our people of Sialum a sub-district in the Morobe Province in prayer and also supporting them in a different ways. Guys, if our organization has a ability to earn things then it's about time for us to bring ideas and thoughts together for the better of our own people.

Ruth pledged to Naomi: (Ruth 1:16-17) "Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me"

We are fortunate to have our own people because we are not like Ruth. We belong to where we came from. Let's stand together as a team and that is for our people's interest.

Concerned Morobe,
kunai-george

ps: Please no offense to anyone or any group. My own thoughts about helping. If you want to help, email me at george.gidisa@myemail.indwes.edu