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Frost and drought. Much of Papua New Guinea is currently affected by a major drought which is one of the most prolonged and severe over the past 100 years. This has been caused by temporary changes associated with the El Nino climatic pertubation. The drought is at least as severe as the major droughts of the late-1890s, mid-1910s and early-1940s. It commenced as early as January 1997 in some locations and became widespread in about July. In limited parts of PNG, the rainfall has been below normal, but these places are not affected by drought. In some places, such as in South Bougainville, above average rainfall has been received. There are indications that the drought will continue for at least some months, but this cannot be predicted with any accuracy. Frost has been recorded in many highland locations and severe frosts have caused widespread devastation at high altitude locations (above 2200 m …