Israel to provide generators and other support to earthquake affected communities in Papua New Guinea

The State of Israel, through MASHAV, the Israeli agency for international development cooperation, has confirmed it stands ready to assist Papua New Guinea in relief efforts being deployed in the highlands regions impacted by the recent 7.5 magnitude earthquake.

Following diplomatic correspondence between Prime Minister Peter O’Neill and  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin (Bibi) Netanyahu, arrangements have been made for immediate support.

“I have advised Prime Minister Netanyahu of the immediate needs at the impacted regions, including lack of electric power,” O’Neill said.

“The Israeli Government has responded immediately by delivering 40 generators to Papua New Guinea.

“These generators will provide immediate assistance to communities suffering from damage to critical infrastructure.

“The earthquake has left many locations with no electricity, and restoration of power is essential for these communities.

“The generators will assist in restoring many vital capabilities, such as the provision of water, medicine, communication and other essential services.”

O'Neill thanked Israel for being a true friend of PNG following the unprecedented earthquake disaster in the Highlands.

“Relations between Papua New Guinea and the State of Israel are strong, and our Government and the people of PNG appreciate the support and friendship of Israel during these challenging times," he said.

“We look forward to further cooperation and the enhancement of the close ties between our countries and our peoples.”

 O’Neill and Netanyahu enjoy a close relationship, strengthened during the historical visit by Prime Minister O’Neill to Israel in 2013.

The generators were delivered by the Israeli Foreign Ministry Pacific Islands advisor, Yaron Sultan-Dadon, who has been sent to deliver aid and assess other possible avenues for assistance through Israeli expertise.

Oil Search commits K16 million to earthquake relief

Managing-director of Oil Search Peter Botten announced today that Oil Search will donate up to K16 million (US$5 million) in cash and kind to support disaster relief efforts in Hela and Southern Highlands provinces.

Oil Search general manager-stakeholder engagement Leon Buskens assisting to move relief supplies at the Pimaga government station in Southern Highlands province where Oil Search today brought medical supplies, food, water, tarpaulins and sleeping mats. These were supplied by Oil Search and the Australian government.

In supporting Government’s initial efforts, Oil Search has already made its Moro base available as a coordination hub for relief efforts.
Oil Search helicopters and personnel have commenced distribution of initial emergency aid, provided by a range of donors and NGOs and food and supplies donated by Oil
Search, to the hardest hit villages, including Pimaga, where over 2000 people who have lost homes and livelihood are sheltering.

Oil Search general manager-stakeholder engagement Leon Buskens assisting to move relief supplies at the Pimaga government station in Southern Highlands where Oil Search today brought medical supplies, food, water, tarpaulins and sleeping mats. These were supplied by Oil Search and the Australian government.

The damage caused by the recent earthquake is unprecedented,  Botten said: “Communities are without basic necessities.
" We are deeply concerned about the welfare of these communities and are working very closely with the PNG Government’s National Disaster Restoration Team and respective provincial disaster committees to provide assistance, in close partnership with other donors, including the Australia and New
Zealand governments.
"With the important infrastructure in Southern Highlands and Hela so severely impacted by the earthquake, the Moro facilities are an important hub for aid distribution.
"We want to play our part by providing our facilities, people, aircraft, immediate food and relief supplies in helping Government to address the critical needs of our communities in the Highlands.
"Our sympathies and prayers go out to alli mpacted by these tragic events.”

Oil Search general manager-stakeholder engagement Leon Buskens addressing people at Pimaga government station in Southern Highlands where Oil Search today brought medical supplies, food, water, tarpaulins and sleeping mats. These were supplied by Oil Search and the Australian government.

The Australian government has begun to fly in supplies to Moro through Australian Defence Force Hercules planes loaded with water, shelter, medicine, cooking pots, bedding, blankets and other supplies.
New Zealand’s first load of emergency supplies lands tomorrow (Monday).
Oil Search helicopters have commenced distribution of this material to areas across Hela and Southern Highlands.
Trukai Industries has donated 20 tonnes of rice and Oil Search has delivered to Moro over K1 million in food packets that are assembled based on international nutritional guidelines.
Oil Search is also connuing with separate charters loaded with emergency supplies.
These will progressively be distributed to communities in need, over the coming days and weeks.
“We have also responded to calls from the Southern Highlands Provincial Health Authority for medical assistance by transporting a medical team to Pimaga, along with emergency medical supplies," Bitten said.
"Medical supplies, provided by the PNG Government and flown to Moro by the Australia Defence Force, have now been delivered to Tari Hospital addressing dwindling stocks
"In the meantime, our engineering and construction resources have been sent from Kopi working north and Kutubu working south, to open the Kopi to Kutubu road, as an alternative to the Highlands Highway.
"This road can become an important route for supply of food, fuel and restoration equipment to earthquake-impacted areas.
“We will continue to help authorities, where we can, to address the critical needs of our communities in this
difficult time.”

State of emergency declared in Highlands earthquake, K450 million for relief and restoration

Prime Minister  Peter O’Neill has announced that an immediate state-of-emergency has been declared for Highlands earthquake disaster areas in Hela, Southern Highlands, Western and Enga.
The National Executive Council has further approved K450 million for relief operations and to restore services, as well as the formation of an emergency disaster restoration team and the establishment of a restoration authority.
"This is an unprecedented disaster in the Highlands region and the appropriate response is underway by the National Government,” O'Neill said.
"A state-of-Emergency has been declared to expedite the restoration of essential public services including healthcare services, schools, road access, airports, power and communications facilities.
“An amount of K450 million has been approved for disaster relief, services restoration and the rebuilding of infrastructure.
“An emergency disaster restoration team, led by Dr William Hamlin, as the emergency controller, will now manage and co-ordinate all restoration activities working with provincial authorities.
“The emergency disaster restoration team will be supported by Department of Works and Implementation, and all other relevant Government agencies.
"Cabinet has further approved the establishment of a restoration authority that will manage long-term reconstruction efforts over a four-year period to fully restore normalcy.
“An emergency session of Parliament will be convened for the presentation of legislation that will establish the restoration authority, with the date of the session to be announced by the Speaker of Parliament."
O'Neill said relief efforts were already underway, and further assessments provided to focus operations to areas in need.
"Members of the PNGDF and disaster officers were dispatched to the affected areas immediately following the earthquake, and are working with provincial authorities, particularly with the governors of Hela and Southern Highlands provinces," he said.
“Essential government departments are already delivering relief, and we are further working with partners in the international community to utilise specialist relief capabilities to reach our people and communities affected by the earthquake.”

Royal Australian Air Force assists Papua New Guinea after earthquake

The Royal Australian Air Force has deployed a C-130J Hercules to Papua New Guinea to provide assistance, following the earthquake that occurred in the early morning of February 26, 2018.

Unloading relief supplies at Moro Airport

The 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck the Highlands region, particularly Hela and Southern Highlands provinces, approximately 600km north-west of Port Moresby.
The C-130J Hercules left from RAAF Base Richmond on  March 1,  2018 and arrived in Port Moresby, where it has begun distributing humanitarian aid bound for earthquake affected areas.
The medium-sized tactical air-lifter has also been requested to conduct aerial surveillance of affected areas in support of thePNG Government.

Back of the aircraft

Humanitarian duty officer at the Australian High Commission in PNG,  Darian Clark, said the earthquake affected many of the peoples living within the PNG highlands.
“This was the biggest earthquake in a hundred years and it spread 150km across the fault line,”  Clark said.
“A number of urban settlements, as well as villages, have been affected.

Humanitarian supplies

" Many in the form of landslides and landslips, which means that roads have been cut off, water contaminated, power knocked out and other widespread effects for the local people.
“This is the first round of humanitarian relief supplies to be provided to the affected area and we understand there is a desperate need for the items we’re taking up.
" So I think the priority of what we are doing cannot be understated.
“We have a mixture of medical supplies and equipment; tarps, tents, blankets and water containers, the essentials of life, following a formal request we received from the Papua New Guinea Government on Wednesday.
“It really confirms the solidarity that Australia has with Papua New Guinea, in times of crisis.
" It has all been made possible, of course, by the C-130J here in country.
"It means that we have been able to respond even quicker than we hoped for.”
Further assessments of the impact, including in remote areas, will be required before the level of damage caused by the earthquake and ongoing aftershocks can be ascertained.
C-130J Hercules Captain, Squadron Leader Justin Della Bosca, said the aircrew from Number 37 Squadron train for these specific kind of emergencies.
“The C-130J Hercules is a medium tactical air-lifter and Number 37 Squadron specialises in highland of Papua New Guinea operations.
"We conduct a lot of training throughout the year to ensure we are ready for this exact kind of emergency,” Squadron Leader Della Bosca said.
“The Hercules has extremely good short field performance and extremely good hot temperature and high altitude performance as well.
"This means we can lift a large amount of cargo out of very short airstrips.
“The Papua New Guinea environment is probably one of the most challenging aviation environments in the world, so all of the pilots at Number 37 Squadron have a lot of respect for the weather and the terrain in Papua New Guinea.”
The thoughts and sympathies of the Royal Australian Air Force are with the Papua New Guinean people affected by the earthquake.

ExxonMobil provides US$1 million for earthquake relief efforts in Papua New Guinea

• Company assisting in relief and recovery efforts; flies relief organizations to affected area
• Working closely with government agencies to determine where and how to direct resources
• Assessment of company operations and facilities continues

IRVING, Texas – Exxon Mobil Corporation said today that it is providing $1 million for the humanitarian relief effort in Papua New Guinea to assist communities affected by a powerful earthquake and aftershocks in the country’s Highlands area.
“We are deeply saddened by the devastation this earthquake has brought to Papua New Guinea,” said Darren W. Woods, chairman and chief executive officer.
"Our highest priority remains the safety and security of people in the Highlands community.
It’s our hope that our contributions of funding, equipment
and other support will provide some relief in a very challenging situation.”
ExxonMobil is assisting national and international aid agencies and relief organisations with rapid response community assessments.
 The company is sourcing tarpaulins, water purification tablets, waterc ontainers, food and other humanitarian supplies, and is working with essential service providers to pre-position and distribute resources to areas in the greatest need.
 ExxonMobil is also helping to reestablish reliable communications, providing phones to relief agencies and organising community meetings.
“In response to the prime minister’s immediate state of emergency, we have committed to deploying our
expertise and resources to aid recovery efforts in the wake of this natural disaster,” said Andrew Barry, managing director of ExxonMobil PNG.
 “We are working closely with the National Disaster Centre, aid
agencies and our community partners to determine where best to direct our resources.”
On Thursday, ExxonMobil, utilising a company-chartered helicopter, led a team of emergency assessment and relief personnel on one of the first visits to the Highlands area since the disaster.
On board were disaster assessors from international aid agencies and representatives of various relief organiSations including the United Church, Salvation Army, International Organisation for Migration,dventist Development and Relief Agency and the United Nations Development Programme.
Anticipating immediate resource needs, the team delivered essentials, including shelter equipment, water and sanitation support to the Para Health Clinic, which serves the Para, Tokaju and Hides areas.

Status of ExxonMobil’s Papua New Guinea operations

The company continues to assess operations and facilities in the country.
 Operations have been safely shut down at two liquefied natural gas trains at its PNG LNG plant near Port Moresby, the Hides Gas
Conditioning Plant and Hides well pads in Hela province, and non-essential personnel from the Hides plant have been evacuated.
There is no damage to the pipeline and no reports of gas leaks from the complexes.

Dot Island

By Moasing Nalu

Oh how peaceful you are
My beautiful island home
Your turquoise seas and lush green hills
Are Mother Nature's splendour

Your colourful reefs and tropical trees
Are the best things I've ever seen
And when the sun goes down
Cool breezes come around

And palm trees sway and swing
As if they're dancing to the wind
And the melody 
The ocean sings

At last when the sun goes down
And brightness begins to fade
From a distance I can see a majestic sight
Which fills me with pride

-Picture by Milen Stiliyanov
PS: Dot Island is in Laukanu, Salamaua, Morobe

Death of rugby league star unites PNG

The shackles of regionalism and tribalism that so divided Papua New Guinea have been broken.

Tears fell freely for most. A moment they shall never forget, as s the death of our champion brought together a nation.

It has taken the life of a 23-year-old rugby league star to do that.
Papua New Guinea international Kato Ottio died on Tuesday after he collapsed at training in Port Moresby.

The sight that moved everyone to tears. Joyce Ottio, mother of Kumuls' superstar Kato Ottio, is comforted by Widnes Vikings-bound Wellington Albert after the funeral service at Sir John Guise Stadium. Ottio and Albert were to have left for England on Thursday, but for Ottio's death.

Ottio spent the last two years with the Canberra Raiders and had just signed with English Super League club Widnes Vikings following his stellar World Cup campaign.
Thousands of people gathered at the Sir John Guise Indoor Stadium on Friday to pay their final respects to a young man who had so touched our lives with his performance during the World Cup.

Hunters' and Kumuls' coach Michael Marum breaks down as he hands Kato Ottio's red, black and gold jumper to his mother Joyce Ottio at Friday's funeral service.

Tears fell freely for most, a moment they shall never forget, as the death of our champion brought together a nation.

We came together. All shackles of regionalism and tribalism broken. It had taken the life of a young man, who touched us all with his rugby league skills, to bring us together.

Ottio and PNG Kumuls' teammate Wellington Albert were to have left for England on Thursday after signing up with the Vikings last month.

He ain't heavy, he's my brother: Kumuls' team mates carry the casket of Kato Ottio out of the Sir John Guise Stadium.

Ottio will be buried at his Tatana village in Port Moresby next Tuesday.

Farewell Kato Ottio. Thank you for the wonderful memories.

Respect: Hundreds line up Sir John Guise Drive as the hearse carrying the body of Kato Ottio leaves after the funeral service at the indoor stadium.

Pilot was a world-class pianist

The National

North Coast Aviation Pilot David Tong, who lost his life in the rugged Saruwaged Range of Morobe in the Dec 23 air crash, was not just an ordinary aviator.

He was one of the top pianists in Australia and the world.

He could have chosen to remain in the top music halls of the world but opted to fly in Papua New Guinea.

David Tong the pianist at a concert.-Picture by Greater Geraldton Regional Library website.

David Tong with North Coast Aviation chief pilot Thomas Keindip in March 2017. Kendip died on Nov 26, 2017, after a short illness.-Picture from Thomas Keindip Facebook page

That fact about Tong’s life became known after his death.

His body, meantime, remain at the funeral home in Lae until funeral arrangements are made this week.

His mother flew in from Australian to see the body of her son and was moved to tears after seeing the display of emotions shown by NCA staff and the people of Morobe

According to the Greater Geraldton Regional Library website of Australia: “Born in Macao in 1983, David Tong migrated to Australia in 1988 and soon began taking piano lessons.

“Following an extensive period of study, he went on to study at the prominent Juilliard School of Music in New York and was awarded the Vladimir Horowitz scholarship.

“In addition to having been a frequent guest artist with all Australian symphony orchestras, David was regularly invited to appear with many of today’s top orchestras including the Hungarian Symphony Orchestra in Budapest, New York Philharmonic, as well as with the philharmonic orchestras of Rochester, Naples (Florida), and Hong Kong

“Of significant importance in David’s career was a performance with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra at the 2002 Sydney Festival’s Gala Domain Concert, where he performed to an audience of more than 90,000 people.”

Since 2014, Tong had worked as a commercial pilot.

He was based in Geraldton and worked as a line pilot for Geraldton Air Charter before moving to PNG in 2016 to join North Coast Aviation.

Tong, 34, survived the crash and made calls on his mobile but bad weather prevented rescuers from reaching him for three days.

The pianist Zsolt Bognar writes: “It is with great sadness that I learn my old friend David Tong was found dead on Tuesday from injuries sustained in a plane crash.

“I remember first meeting him in Texas in 2001 and being struck by his sunshine-filled spirit, his strong Australian accent, and vivacious temperament.

“He was an incredible pianist with a breathtaking technique–I remember how he burst into my practice room and deployed Chopin Etudes with ease–and as a human being and friend he will be missed.

“What devastating news.”

###

Late December 2017

By Malum Nalu

I take a walk along 2017 Lane
Enjoying the late December weather
Place looks glorious
After the 12th month rain

At every corner
Fresh fruit and vegetables
A good feeling in my heart
A spring in my step for 2018

Governor-General pays tribute to bush pilots of Morobe

Governor-General Sir Bob Dadae says the loss of another North Coast Aviation pilot is a great loss to the people of Kabwum, Morobe and Papua New Guinea.
The former Kabwum MP said this yesterday when passing his condolences to NCA on the loss of  Australian pilot, David Tong, after a Britten Norman Islander  crash on Mt Saruwaged in the rugged Saruwaged Range of Morobe last Saturday.
His death comes after that of NCA's chief pilot Captain Thomas Keindip, from Kabwum, after a short illness last month.

North Coast Aviation pilots Thomas Kendip and David Tong at Tari Airport, Hela, in June this year.

Tong crashed into Mt Saruwaged, the fourth highest mountain in the country at 13,520 feet above sea level, in very bad weather when returning to Lae from Kabwum.
From Melbourne, Australia, Tong joined NCA in Nov 2016 and has been described by friends and family as a friendly and likeable person.
He was alive when he crashed at 9000ft and called NCA at Nadzab on his mobile phone, however, bad weather prevented rescue teams from going in.

North Coast Aviation pilots Thomas Kendip and David Tong at Tari Airport, Hela, in June this year.

It was only on Tuesday, four days after the crash, that a search-and-rescue team from Porgera mine went into the crash site but Tong was already dead.
The death has already sparked off much controversy over search-and-rescue efforts, given that the crash site is not that far away from Nadzab, and the fact that he was alive at the time of the crash.

David Tong, Thomas Keindip and a fellow North Coast Aviation pilot at Teptep airstrip in Kabwum, Morobe, earlier this year.

Sir Bob said it was only because of dedicated NCA pilots like Tong and Keindip that goods and services had reached Kabwum over the years.
"Lady Hannah and I, on behalf of our family, people of Kabwum, Morobe and PNG would like to express our deepest sorrow and sadness to the family, management and staff of NCA for the death of another experienced pilot (Tong) in a short time after we lost Capt Thomas (Keindip) not long ago," he said.
"Having benefitted so much from NCA during my 30 years service in the province, I am very saddened by these tragedies.
"May God give everyone peace."