Powerful earthquake rattles remote Papua New Guinea

A powerful earthquake rattled forest villages and a large gold mine in central Papua New Guinea on Monday, and the government sent officers to the region to assess unverified reports of fatalities and check the extent of the damage.

Officials said that as of Monday afternoon there were no confirmed deaths or injuries in the Pacific Island nation.

Chris McKee, acting director of geohazards management for the Papua New Guinea government, said tens of thousands of people live subsistence lifestyles in the remote forested highlands region affected by the quake.

“There seem to be quite a few reports of the quake being felt strongly,” he said.

The magnitude 7.5 quake hit about 89 kilometres southwest of Porgera, the site of a large gold mine that employs more than 2,500 residents. The area also is home to a number of oil and gas operations and coffee plantations.

ExxonMobil Papua New Guinea said it had shut down the Hides Gas Conditioning Plant, where there was damage to the administration buildings, living quarters and mess hall.

The company said it had also suspended flights from Komo airfield, which it built to service its operations, and was planning to evacuate nonessential plant staff.

Oil Search Managing Director Peter Botten said the company was closing down some production operations in the region as a precaution.

Both Oil Search and ExxonMobil said there were no reports of any injuries to their staff, and ExxonMobil said its staff was accounted for and safe.

An official at the Porgera gold mine wrote on Facebook that he planned to find out what caused power blackouts and other damage after the quake shook the whole area.