Eleven (11) people are believed to be dead after being buried alive under the debris caused by a huge landslide that occurred in the Sikola village in Gumine district of Simbu Province following the heavy rains experienced in the area. The continuous rainfall has caused massive natural disasters to occur in many parts of Simbu province and Gumini District is one of the districts hit hard with natural disaster. Landslides, destruction to roads, bridges and houses, and the massive floodings have been reported all over the province. The incident at Sikola village occurred on Wednesday 13th March at around 6:12am in the morning, burying the eleven people and leaving others displaced. Mr. Terence Kee, the Coordinator for Dead and Alive, Triage and Case Management at Kundiawa Sir Nombri General Hospital, confirmed this incident. In an exclusive interview with PNG Hausbung, Mr. Kee revealed that out of the 11 buried alive, 9 are children, 1 pregnant mother and 1 adult female, while two male survivors were brought into Kundiawa Nombri General Hospital a day after the landslide. These two male survivors had no major injuries, they just sustained soft tissue injuries and were treated and discharged from the hospital. Member for Gumine District, Mr. Dawa Lucas Dekena has conveyed his condolences to the immediate families of the victims and reminded Gumine citizens to take extra precautions as the district authority moves in to assist with disaster relief for the victims. Mr. Dekena stated that Gumini District alone experienced 12 landslides with the biggest at Sikola village where the sides of mount Bemal slid down and blocking the road, buried the Bailey bridge, formed a dam and also claimed lives. The local Member said that to actually reach Sikola village, the District team had to clear the debris at Koltamak, and two new landslides at Garinda and Baul before reaching Sikola. He added that the district team are on the ground with excavators on both sides of the landslip but rocks and debris are still coming down from Bemal ridge some 200m up the steep mountain, and therefore it was too dangerous to start work right away. “They will wait for the weather to improve before starting the clearance," he said. He said this is the first time Gumine District has experienced a natural disaster of such magnitude, and he is now appealing to the National, Provincial government and international agencies for assistance. The Member already informed the Prime Minister along with the Minister for Works about the damages and lives lost from the disaster. He has also informed the National Disaster Centre and Defence Force Engineering battalion at Kerowali in Jiwaka province to access the situation and report back. “We need the disaster office to visit the site to assess the situation, and we also need rescue workers to assist in the search for the 11 unaccounted lives," he said. In the meantime, Mr. Dekena notified that the Gaima-Genabona-Onule road is open for use, but they will give clearance for people to use after the checks and confirmation if it's safe to use. Meanwhile, Mr. Kee confirmed that the retrieval exercise for the 11 bodies buried under the landslide is expected to commence around 4pm this afternoon. Mr. Kee also added that there are mass reports of natural disasters happening in almost all districts of Simbu Province, from Sol- Nomane, Gembolg and Chuave, but reports are not confirmed yet. However, reports from Gumini district and Gunange in Sinesine Yongomugl district are confirmed with casualties and deaths known. In Gunange, he said two young girls aged 9 and 4 years of age were killed by flood waters.