Heavy floods flash Enga

By PHILIP KEPSON
THOUSANDS of people in Enga province are stranded with a number of key bridges worth millions of kina washed away by heavy flooding last Tuesday night.
Members of the Provincial Disaster and Emergency Committee took an aerial tour of the affected area. They said they were shocked to see the extent of the damage in all the six districts.
The seriously affected areas include Pilikambi in Lagaip-Porgera, Lai valley in Wabag and parts of Tsak Valley and Wapenamanda.
Provincial civil works director Charles Bannah who is currently working closely with committee chairman and provincial administrator Dr Samson Amean said the value of damage to private and public assets including bridges and roads would run into millions of kina. He said a detailed report would be presented to stakeholders including Governor Peter Ipatas and the national government. Education authorities said students, ranging from secondary, high, primary and elementary schools from Sari, Kamas, Sakarip, Kiwi and nearby villages as well as those in Wabag district including Kopen Secondary School had also been affected.
Those who were forced to remain on one side of Lai River that flows in the middle of the Lai valley as it flooded from Surunki in the far west to Wapenamanda in the east were stranded as a result of the damaged bridges.
The people do not have clean water and experiencing shortage of food. District government authorities said Ambum,Tale and Lagaip rivers in Kompaiam/Ambum, Wapenamanda and Laiagam burst their banks, carrying away houses, trade stores, piggeries, poultry, food gardens and coffee trees worth thousands of kina. The bridges that were reportedly swept away include Kiwi bridge in Wabag, Kaekin-Amusa in Wapenamanda, Tale in Tsak Valley, Talyokos-Pompabus in Wapenamanda.
It was also reported that heavy landslides in Wapenamanda, Wabag, Kandep, Kompiam, Porgera-Paela due to two weeks of continuous rain had caused a lot of damage and disruption to public travelers.