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Peruvian mudslide kills 31, area to be evacuated
A line of trucks backs up where a bridge washed out on Peru's Pan American Highway in the province of Lambayeque
Vast tracts of farmland under water
January 29, 1998
Web posted at: 8:47 p.m. EDT (2047 GMT)AREQUIPA, Peru (CNN) -- A river burst out of its banks, triggering a mudslide that killed at least 31 people and obliterated part of a town in the Andes Mountains.
"With the work carried out by rescue teams so far, we have managed to identify 31 bodies," said Leoncio Callo, the governor of the town of Choco, 230 miles northeast of this southern city. "Fifty houses have been completely destroyed, including the medical post and the town hall."
Survivors fled to nearby hills around the village of 500 people. Fearing more natural disasters, authorities planned to evacuate the entire area.
"There are two river gorges that could burst at any moment and completely bury the town," said Choco Mayor Cristobal Chura.
Officials said a river burst its banks near Choco on Wednesday, launching an avalanche of mud and rocks. Seven more people were seriously injured.
Heavy rains from the El Niño weather pattern have triggered dozens of mudslides and flash floods throughout Peru in recent months, killing more than 100 people and forcing about 25,000 to become temporary refugees.
Vast tracts of farmland under water
Flooding in Ica, Peru, on Wednesday 1M/28 sec./160x120
QuickTime movieLandslides have regularly blocked main highways and vast tracts of agricultural land are under water. El Niño has pushed up temperatures and turned the usually arid coastal desert into a verdant landscape.
Peru lies close to the area of the Pacific Ocean where the powerful El Niño weather phenomenon forms every two to seven years, causing droughts, torrential rains and floods worldwide.
Scientists have dubbed the 1997/1998 episode the "climatic event of the century" and it is expected to continue gathering strength until mid-year.
Peruvian fishermen gave the weather pattern its traditional name of El Niño, or Christ Child, because the phenomenon usually appears first in December.
Reuters contributed to this report.
Strange Brew | Fire and Rain | The Trackers
The Naysayers | Losers & Winners | Related SitesRelated story:
- Devastating floods in Peru blamed on El NiNiño - January 28, 1998
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