Earthquake of 5.1 magnitude kills five in Peru

LIMA – A 5.1-magnitude earthquake in the Andes region of Peru killed five people, officials said on July 19.

The tremor on the night of July 18 injured another 21 people as it shook the town of Chongos Bajo about 300km east of Lima, the Geophysical Institute of Peru said.

The epicentre’s depth was 24km.

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

Because the epicentre was at a shallow depth and many houses in that area are made of adobe or a wood, cane and mud blend called “quincha”, some towns suffered significant damage, said Luis Vasquez, director of the National Civil Defence Institute.

“Forty-eight houses were destroyed and 300 people were left homeless,” he said.

Peru is situated on the so-called Pacific “Ring of Fire” – an arc of intense seismic activity stretching from Japan through South-east Asia and across the Pacific basin.

Seismologists say Peru experiences at least 400 earthquakes a year, three-quarters of which are so weak that people do not feel them.