Earthquakes in Peru Kill Five, Injure 21 in Junin Region

Two earthquakes struck Peru killing at least five people and injuring 21 in a mountainous region east of the capital Lima, according to authorities.

Peru’s National Seismological Center said the magnitude 5.1 and 3.7 quakes hit the Junin region on Saturday night. Photos on social media appear to show collapsed homes and rescue workers clearing rubble.

Rescue workers are continuing to search for people who may still be trapped under the rubble.

“I deeply regret the consequences of the earthquake that occurred in Junin,” president-elect Keiko Fujimori said in a social media post on Sunday. “I express my most heartfelt condolences to the families of those who have passed away and my solidarity with those who have been affected.”

Luis Vasquez, the leader of Peru’s National Civil Defense Institute, told Peruvian radio that early reports indicate at least 48 homes were destroyed and 18 damaged, displacing about 300 people who are being provided with tents.

The Exitosa radio station reported that five deaths resulting from the tremors have been confirmed, citing authorities. The Reuters news agency put the total at six, citing the country’s civil defence chief.

Homes in the town of Chupaca, about 300 kilometres (186 miles) east of Lima, are often constructed with adobe mud bricks and are prone to collapse.

“The earthquake destroyed our home. Here there are many adobe houses that collapsed,” an unnamed resident of Chongos Bajo told the N television network.

Peru is in the volcanic zone known as the Pacific Ring of Fire, which accounts for about 85 percent of the world’s seismic activity.

The Peruvian National Seismological Center said the first quake struck at a depth of 24 km (15 miles) and the second at 18 km. The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre previously estimated that the first quake had a magnitude of 5.6.