Seven people in Papua New Guinea have been killed by a landslide that has cut off the Highlands regions highway.
Local reports says four primary school girls on their way to school were reportedly buried alive along with other commuters travelling on two separate public buses when the landslide hit yesterday.
Houses and gardens have also been destroyed as the landslide swept through the section of the highway a short distance outside Goroka, in PNG's Eastern Highlands Province.
A local told the news agency, AAP, that the body of one of the four school girls has already been found while three others remained under the debris.
Reports remain sketchy but the death toll, now at seven, is expected to climb when search efforts gain momentum early today.
Heavy rains have been causing havoc to the Highlands region this year with constant flooding and almost continual rain.