Situm | |
|---|---|
Ex-Servicemen Block | |
 Situm - 7th Australian Division Memorial School | |
  Situm Location in the Lae area | |
| Coordinates: 6°40′41″S147°3′19″E / 6.67806°S 147.05528°E | |
| Country |  Papua New Guinea |
| Province | Morobe Province |
| District | Nawaeb District |
| LLG | Labuta Rural LLG |
| Time zone | UTC+10 (AEST) |
Situm is a government ex-servicemen block outside of Lae in Labuta Rural LLG, Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea.
Situm is located 20 kilometres (12 mi) north-east of Lae, on The Bukawa-Finchaffen National Highway Road across the Busu river and over the Bupu River causeway. It is 170 metres (560 ft) above sea level.
The area around Situm is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire and geologic instability has produced numerous faults, resulting in earthquakes. [1] [2] Situm sits between the larger Indo-Australian Plate and the Pacific Plate on the South Bismarck Plate in the Ramu-Markham Fault Zone where the New Guinea Highlands Deforming Zone and South Bismarck tectonic plates are converging at up to 50 millimetres (2.0 in)/yr and the seismic hazard is significant. [3]
The Ramu-Markham Fault Zone, which follows the northern edge of the Markham Valley, is the active plate boundary between the South Bismarck Plate and terranes within the New Guinea Highlands Deforming Zone. The Ramu-Markham Fault Zone has generated large thrust earthquakes (e.g. the 6 April 1999 MW 6.4, 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) north of Lae, near Hobu, and the 22 November 2007 MW 6.8, 110 kilometres (68 mi) north of Lae). Geological evidence suggests that major earthquakes in pre-historic times have occurred in this area, [4] and that there is the potential for another large earthquake to occur anytime within the next 100 years. [3] [4] [5]
Situm is the location of a geodetic monitoring site which aims to monitor the tectonic motion of Papua New Guinea. [6] The site ID is 'SITU' and is monitored by the Geodynamics group and the University of California. [7]
Situm is located to the north of the beaches where the Australian 7th Division carried out an amphibious landing in September 1943, as part of plans to capture Lae from the Japanese during the Salamaua–Lae campaign. During that campaign and the subsequent advance into the Finisterre Range, the locals assisted the Allied troops and after the war, the Australian 7th Division AIF Association helped construct a school at Situm in 1964 as a thank you. [8]
Before the establishment of the Situm and Gobari settlements, the area was covered in rainforest and patches of Kunai grass. At the beginning of field research in 1968, Situm consisted of 22 blocks. Among the Situm settlers there were 16 block holders [9] involved in cattle [10] and pig production. [11] Settlers also harvest coconuts from plantations. [12]
Rainfall in Situm has been recorded at 4000mm per year. [13]
In October 2013, a Health Foundation team has conducted a three-day workshop in Situm ex-servicemen block, which attracted a total of 63 participants (30 females and 33 males) and allowed women and men to learn about sexual health issues and strengthen their relationship. [14]
In July 2013, the Rotary Club of Lae delivered a 5KVA generator to Situm School, and four Tuffa Tanks to the Situm Medical Centre and plumbing hardware to the Situm Health Centre. [15]
In 2009, the World Health Organization reported cholera cases in the ex-servicemen block of Situm. In Morobe Province settlements of East Taraka, Uniblock, Nawae Block, Salamander Tais, 12 Mile, Bumayong, Tanam, 6 Mile, 1 Mile, Talair Compound and 2nd street were affected. [16] This is the first confirmed cholera outbreak since the 1960s and PNG officials fear it will further burden their struggling health system. [17] The prevalence of enteric diseases remains high in PNG where access to safe drinking water is limited, particularly in rural areas where an estimated 87% of the population lives. [18]
Situm women are producing dried banana chips for production as a popular snack. [19] [20]
In the 1940s Taro Leaf Blight caused by Phytophthora colocasiae was estimated to cause up to 50% loss in production. In 1993, a National Taro breeding program, with the focus on breeding Taro varieties resistant varieties, commenced. [21]
By 2000 Situm farmers had given up planting Taro (Colocasia esculenta Schott) because of taro beetles from the genera Papuana and Eucopidocaulus. [22]
The Situm Primary School has been described as one of the best fishing or outdoors adventure locations in the regions of Asia/Pacific. [23]
In 2004, three members from Situm formed a band called Lungstar of Morobe and have had their debut album recorded and released with the A20 Productions Studio of Barakau. [24]
In May 2008, Evangelical Lutheran Church of PNG leader, the late Bishop Doctor Wesley Kigasung, was laid to rest at his Aluki village in Bukawa, Morobe province. What was described as one of the most-moving scenes, Situm primary school, children sang a touching tribute to Dr Kigasung which brought tears to the eyes of those in the motorcade. [25]
Lae (German: Preußen-Reede, later Lehe) is the capital of Morobe Province and is the second-largest city in Papua New Guinea. It is located near the delta of the Markham River and at the start of the Highlands Highway, which is the main land transport corridor between the Highlands Region and the coast. Lae is the largest cargo port of the country and is the industrial hub of Papua New Guinea. The city is known as the Garden City and home of the University of Technology.
Morobe Province is a province on the northern coast of Papua New Guinea. The provincial capital and largest city is Lae. The province covers 33,705 km2, with a population of 674,810, and since the division of Southern Highlands Province in May 2012 it is the most populous province. It includes the Huon Peninsula, the Markham River, and delta, and coastal territories along the Huon Gulf. The province has nine administrative districts. At least 101 languages are spoken, including Kâte and Yabem language. English and Tok Pisin are common languages in the urban areas, and in some areas pidgin forms of German are mixed with the native language.
The 1998 Papua New Guinea earthquake occurred on July 17 with a moment magnitude of 7.0 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe). The event occurred on a reverse fault near the north coast region of Papua New Guinea, 25 kilometers (16 mi) from the coast near Aitape and caused a large undersea landslide which caused a tsunami that hit the coast, killing between at least 2,183 and 2,700 people and injuring thousands.
Mining in Papua New Guinea is an important part of the Papua New Guinea economy.
The South Bismarck Plate is a small tectonic plate located mainly in the southern Bismarck Sea. The eastern part of New Guinea and the island of New Britain are on this plate. It is associated with high earthquake and volcanic activity as part of the New Britain subduction zone within the Pacific Ring of Fire.
Nadzab Village is in the Markham Valley, Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea on the Highlands Highway. Administratively, it is located in Gabsongkeg ward of Wampar Rural LLG. The Nadzab Airport is located East of Nadzab Village and was the site of the only Allied paratrooper assault in New Guinea on 5 September 1943.
On October 31 at 17:53 UTC the island of New Guinea was shaken by an earthquake of magnitude 6.9 Mw that particularly affected the city of Madang on the north coast of Papua New Guinea. Causing between five and eighteen fatalities, it triggered landslides that ran down steep hills into poorly reinforced wooden huts. The area that experienced the most powerful intensity extended 20 kilometers (12 mi) out from the epicenter. Underwater landslides caused minor tsunami over about 100 km of coast and severed underwater cables in several places.
Bumayong is an outer suburb of Lae in the Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea.
Dowsett is a suburb of Lae in the Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea.
Bugandi is a suburb of Lae in the Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea.
Yalu is a large village in Wampar Rural LLG, located in the Markham Valley of Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea. It lies along the Highlands Highway 21.5 kilometres (13.4 mi) north-west of Lae, 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) southeast of Nadzab. The landscape is typically lowland rainforest.
3 Mile is a suburb of Lae in the Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea.
6 Mile is a suburb of Lae in the Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea.
9 Mile is a large village in the Markham Valley of Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea. It lies along the Highlands Highway 9 miles (14 km) from the center of Lae between the foothills of the Atzera Range and the Markham River. The Atzera Range starts at Bugandi and runs adjacent to the Markham River has an elevation of 280 meters above sea level. northwest of Lae, 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) southeast of Nadzab. The landscape is typically lowland rainforest.
As the township of Lae, in Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea is a relatively new entity, the history of the Lae environs is much older.
The 1993 Finisterre Range earthquakes began on October 13 with a Mw 6.9 mainshock, followed by Mw 6.5 and 6.7 earthquakes. These earthquakes struck beneath the Finisterre Range, north of Markham Valley in Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea. The complex earthquake sequence seriously damaged many villages in the rural Eastern Papua New Guinea region, generating landslides and killing at least 60 people.
On September 9, 2002, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck off the coast of Wewak, Sandaun Province, Papua New Guinea. The shallow reverse earthquake triggered a local tsunami measuring 5 meters high. The disaster resulted in at least 6 deaths, 70 injuries and building damage.
On April 1, 2002, a Mw 5.3 magnitude earthquake struck near the coast of Moro Province in Papua New Guinea. It struck at a depth of 80.5 km beneath the surface and had a focal mechanism corresponding to reverse faulting. The earthquake triggered a landslide that killed 36 people and injured 11.
On 11 September 2022, an earthquake of moment magnitude 7.6–7.7 struck Papua New Guinea, in the northern part of Morobe Province. The normal faulting earthquake occurred with a hypocenter depth of 116.0 km (72.1 mi) beneath the Finisterre Range. A maximum perceived Modified Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe) was estimated. Shaking was widely felt across the country and even in neighbouring Indonesia. At least 21 people died and 42 were injured, mostly due to landslides.
A magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck 38.3 km (23.8 mi) east-southeast of Ambunti in East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea on 3 April 2023.
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