Living in Peru : your everyday companion

Oxfam America has launched a special appeal to support the victims of the earthquake in Peru.

Oxfam America has launched a special appeal to support the victims of the earthquake. Oxfam International is planning to launch a program next week to help victims in rural communities. For further details check  http://www.oxfamamerica.org/ or http://www.oxfam.org/en/news/2007/pr070816_peru_earthquake_response  

You can visit the Oxfam international and Oxfam America websites and read updates on the situation in rural areas and on Oxfam’s response. A couple of statements from the website follow:

Although Wednesday’s earthquake in Peru was felt all over the country, even causing panic in Lima, the worst-hit region is located some 180 kilometers (111 miles) south of the capital. 800,000 people live in this southern region where there are three medium-sized cities: Chincha, located on the Pacific Coast 190 km (128 miles) south of Lima; the city of Pisco, 230 km (168 miles) south of Lima and slightly farther inland; and Ica, the third largest city in the region, located 300 miles southeast of the capital and 70 km (43 miles) inland from the coast.

Reaching the affected zone from Lima has proved extremely challenging because the earthquake caused a key bridge just north of Chincha on the Pan American Highway to collapse and nearly cutting off all access to the region. There are currently 2,000 vehicles on both sides of the collapsed bridge that are unable to pass. As a result, it has been very difficult to both evacuate the wounded and provide them with emergency assistance. The Peruvian army is currently looking for a quick, temporary solution that will allow increased and immediate access to the area.

At 3 am on Thursday, an Oxfam International staff member traveled to the region (on a flight organized by the Peruvian army and Institute of Civil Defense) in order to assess the humanitarian needs. He is currently in the worst hit zone and despite telephone communication difficulties, has managed to report back with first-hand information from Pisco, where he has found that 50% of the city’s houses have been damaged or destroyed. Most of these houses are made of mud and adobe; the city’s more modern brick structures incurred little damage. The city of Ica, which is located closer to the coast, was, for the most part, not directly affected by the earthquake as the epicenter was further inland. Nevertheless, the earthquake caused the roof of a church to collapse during mass, resulting in 40 deaths. Rescue workers are continuing to search for survivors who might be trapped under the debris.

Oxfam International will soon decide how it will add to the emergency response that is being led by the Peruvian government, including the Ministry of Health and the Institute of Civil Defense. Oxfam will most likely provide potable water both in the cities and the rural towns and villages hit by the earthquake (we know that government, faced with so many demands and enormous needs, will face capacity limitations). Another area of concern for Oxfam International, as we’ve learned from previous experiences in the country, is the rural population. When human resources and assistance is scarce or overstretched, urban-dwellers receive the most help because they have easy access to media attention and better chances of filing public complaints if they don’t receive the assistance they need. Therefore, more remote areas hit by this earthquake will be less likely to receive adequate help. Oxfam International will therefore prioritize assisting people living in these rural areas.

Francisco Boeren is the Deputy Director of Oxfam America's South America Regional Office.

LIMA — As aftershocks continued to hit the south of Peru, international aid agency Oxfam has arrived in the epicenter of the crisis to assess its emergency response, which will aim to provide urgent relief such as clean water for city-dwellers displaced by the earthquake and for those who are caught in remote rural areas.

Oxfam's humanitarian officer in Peru, Sergio Alvarez, today traveled to the worst hit zone, including the city of Pisco and the surrounding rural areas—which he reached on foot—and carried out an initial assessment of the devastation. More Oxfam staff including a water engineer will travel this afternoon to Pisco, a city of nearly 120,000 inhabitants. Some 665,000 people live in the wider affected region.

Alvarez said: "It is impossible to get to Pisco from Lima. The San Clemente Bridge that links Pisco with the Pan American highway has collapsed.

"All the adobe buildings in Pisco have collapsed. The modern buildings are fine. The Peruvian Civil Defense has told me that they calculate that at least 50% of the houses in Pisco have collapsed. San Andres, in Cañete, has also suffered a great amount of destruction.

"There are people trapped in their houses, and Pisco's San Clemente church collapsed while mass was underway. The news I'm receiving is that there are many dead bodies. Rescue operations are now underway but fire trucks and other rescue vehicles coming from Lima weren't able to reach the area until 11 am this morning due to the collapsed bridge. They were stuck about one and a half hours away from Pisco but are now in the area and have so far rescued six people trapped under rubble.

"Local authorities are asking for help, particularly with the distribution of medicines, tents and blankets, as many people have lost their homes. The distribution of tents has yet to be organized and there is no electricity or running water in the area. The situation is desperate, especially for those people who survived but who have lost their homes.

"Oxfam is especially worried about people in the rural areas because their houses are extremely vulnerable and they are harder to reach."

Oxfam works with partners in the area affected by the earthquake. In 2001, Oxfam responded to the earthquake in Arequipa, providing water and shelters.

The poorest areas are the ones that consistently suffer the most during and after a natural disaster. In Peru, more than 72% of those in rural areas are living below the poverty line. 49% of the general population lives below the poverty line and almost 32% of the population lives on less than $2 per day.

How You Can Help

Oxfam America is accepting donations through its Peru Earthquake Relief and Recovery Fund.

 | |

• Sports : Peru company donates $10,000 to young chess champ
• Art/Culture/History : "Quena" declared National Cultural Heritage in Peru
• APEC PERU 2008 : Peru seeks to attract more Chinese investment in APEC bilateral meeting
• Economy : Callao Port to move over 20 million tons of Peru’s exports this year
• Economy : Peru - Korea to start free trade negotiations