Peru's Mantaro Valley earthquake leaves dozens dead, families await aid

The double earthquake that struck the southern Mantaro valley in the Junín region has left at least five people dead and 32 injured, six of whom remain hospitalized. Official figures report 398 people displaced, 52 homes destroyed, 43 uninhabitable and 74 damaged.

Local authorities, including the head of the National Police and ministers of Housing and Labor, visited the affected districts and announced cash bonuses and prefabricated houses for the victims. Residents say the assistance is insufficient: only 17 tents were distributed in the Pumpunya annex for eight neighborhoods, and in Carhuapaccha just five tents were given for the entire community. Community leader Karina Lozano Páucar said, “We need at least ten tents for each neighborhood; we only received seventeen for all of them.”

The National Civil Defence Institute (Indeci) continues to map damage across districts such as San Juan de Iscos, Chongos Bajo, and Huancayo, while families remain in makeshift camps awaiting further inspection and reconstruction support.