The biggest shopping centre in Lorengau town, Manus Province, was burnt down in the early hours of this morning with close to 10 people unaccounted for.
Police in Manus are yet to confirm deaths or injuries, as up until 12pm today, it was still burning, making it difficult for police to carry out investigation.
Although it was not confirmed, police believe the fire started from an electrical fault from where the Asian owners reside.
The Asian-owned Splendid Star consisted of a supermarket, bakery, wholesale and hardware; the whole lengthy building went up in flames.
Police are now waiting for the fire to die out before investigations can be carried out, as eyewitnesses say they did not see anyone coming out of the building when it went up in flames.