On Sunday 11.00am, a Helifix helicopter brought into Popondetta ‘s Doroin’s Park in Northern Province, caskets of two youths at the ages of 18 and 19 respectively after being found dead from possible hypothermia and cold temperature exposure while walking the Kokoda track.
They had gone missing for 11 days before locals around Naduru area found their bodies, which is off the track from the Mayola area where the certified common track runs.
Kokoda track has over recent years, developed a history of a significant number of people missing their way on the track and unable to find their way back to safety resulting in lives lost while walking the famous track. Therefore, the common questions that begin to flood in everyone’s minds are; what happened, how did they end up there, who was the team leader and so forth when it’s too late. The questions asked might have done right and justice to the public walking the trail every year if authorities have seen enough lives lost. The latter question of how many more lives do we need to see going missing before any action is taken at all to ensure safe passage along the track.
It is with good common sense that a leader of a pack keeps a head count and total account of all members on a regular interval while on the track. It is also of paramount importance for authorities such as Kokoda Track Authority to erect signposts and other means of indicators to give directions including huts for resting along the track. Similarly, it is equally important for all trekkers walking along the trail to keep in close proximity with one another while on the track.
Loosing life on the track is an incident everyone concerned must be mindful of and do everything possible to avoid it as much as possible.
The site where locals found the corpses is 7,000ft above sea level and considered very cold area. According to local sources, it had been raining heavily for three days. It was after the heavy rainfall when a local found the corpses of the young men, just a few meters off the track that leads to the main track they had lost over number of days.
Local sources said there were sufficient rations found in their backpacks but may have obviously died of exposure to cold weather.
The two male youths are confirmed as Brandon Tago and Ansernee Kaupa who are apparently cousins and both attend Iarowari High School. Brandon has just completed his grade 10 while the cousin brother’s grade is unconfirmed. They both chose to walk the trail with a group so a father of one of the boys brought their holiday baggage over to Popondetta by air.
They started by leaving Owens corner on the 27th December and after three days on the track, the two boys lost contact of the main party and were on their own from there on. It is unsure if the guides or the track leaders made attempts to find them when they found out they were missing. The main party instead continued to walk until they reached Kokoda station and raised the alarm after several days.
The locals alerted Henry Johns Amuli, the member for Sohe Open who took it upon himself to organise a chopper with two caskets and other logistical support to repatriate the bodies out of the site to Popondetta. Two officers from St Johns Ambulance and a forensic police officer accompanied the member for Sohe to the site, assisted to prepare the corpses before putting them into the caskets prior to bringing them into Popondetta.
Henry Johns Amuli handed over the two caskets officially to the immediate families with some foodstuff for the family during their mourning. He further made commitment to assist the family take the bodies to their choice of burial.
While on the ground the Provincial Administrator with the Provincial Disaster team provided fuel for the chopper including other logistical support to the immediate families.
Also, the Provincial Administrator thanked the air crew on behalf of the family and the Province for extracting the two bodies and bringing them both back home to their love ones.
“It was an unfortunate situation that had happened and we must accept what had happened and move on with life”.
He further advised the general public intending to use the track to take extra precautions, ensure they are physically and mentally fit to take the challenge to walk the track. Trained guides must be used to take groups and individuals through the track.
He further said that the track is currently closed to international tourist due to COVID-19 and so the up-keep of the track was downgraded. Track maintenance was not done and secondary regrowth had caused these young men to make a wrong turn which led to their fate.
He strongly advised that individuals and groups who wish to walk the track at this time must report to authorities before they start walking.
“We have rangers along the track and they must know the movement of people using the track to avoid such incidents in the future.”
He also thank the member for Sohe, Henri Johns Amuli, the CEO of the Kokoda Track Authority, Julius Wargirai for providing the much needed assistance to airlift the bodies from the location into Popondetta, the efforts of the local leaders and their communities and the families of the deceased and Helifix for working together to manage this situation.
This is an unfortunate incident may their souls get to the luminous height. it has become necessary for precautions to be taken to prevent the loss of precious lives.
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