More than 2,000 people are feared to have been buried alive by a landslide that hit a remote region in Enga Province in northern Papua New Guinea on Friday, May 24, media reports said on Monday.

As of Sunday, government officials in the Oceanian country said that at least 670 people were confirmed dead, and the toll from the disaster was expected to rise, The New York Times reported on Monday.

"The landslide buried more than 2,000 people alive and caused major destruction to buildings, food gardens and caused major impact on the economic lifeline of the country,” Lusete Laso Mana, an official in the national disaster centre, said in a letter to the United Nations, cited by the New York Times.

The official said that rescue efforts continued to be a challenge, as the main highway to the area is blocked and the ground remains unstable as water flows beneath the rocks, shifting land and "posing ongoing danger to both the rescue teams and survivors alike.”

The collapse of a mountain side early Friday morning wiped out a village in Enga province, with the damage extending for close to a kilometre, according to observers.

About 3,800 people had been living in the area prior to the disaster, which has caused "extensive” damage, according to the government official.