Floods and landslides in Papua New Guinea's Southern Highlands Province have claimed one life and left hundreds of people homeless after wiping out their village houses and food gardens.
An aid worker at the Catholic aid organisation Caritas PNG says the rush of water down from the volcano of Mt Giluwe, followed some sort of explosion up the moutain.
She says the floods down the river hit at lunchtime when people were in their houses at Kuma in the Upper Mendi region.
Efforts are under way to get relief supplies to the area to assist homeless families staying with friends or relatives or living in makeshift shelters.
