Living in Peru : your everyday companion

By Jessie North

In January 2010 I finally fulfilled a lifelong dream and took a flight to Peru to hike the Inca trail to Machu Picchu. Unfortunately my arrival coincided with heavy rains and landslides in the Cusco region of Peru, and Machu Picchu and the Inca trail were closed. My disappointment was huge, but it soon gave way to concern for the thousands of local people whose homes and villages had been swept away in the mudslides. These people were now totally dependent on donations of food, water, warm clothing and blankets, and a friend and I decided we wanted to help. We went to the local market in Cusco to buy supplies - kilos of potatoes, rice, onions, corn, cooking oil, and piles of warm blankets - and we took them to one of the worst affected villages, Huacarpay. While there I spoke to some of the villagers and aid workers. This is their story.

At 1 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 25, 56-year-old Jose Aurelio Córdoba awoke to the sound of his neighbors screaming. He got out of bed and found himself waist deep in rushing water. After days and nights of heavy rain in the Andean Cusco region of Peru, the river Huatanay had burst its banks and was raging through the village of Huacarpay, home to 1,600 inhabitants and thousands of livestock.

Water levels like these have not been seen in the Cusco area for 25 years. The Peruvian government declared a state of emergency as floods and landslides swept away roads and bridges and part of the railway line to Machu Picchu, leaving 2,000 foreign tourists stranded at the ancient Inca city. But while helicopters were being sent to airlift the tourists to safety, the real tragedy was and still is unfolding on the ground.

Huacarpay is just 30 kilometers from the city of Cusco and is one of many Peruvian towns and villages affected by the disaster. Like most houses in the village, Jose Córdoba’s was made of adobe mud bricks with a clay-tile roof and a dirt floor. This simple dwelling was no match for the raging Huatanay and it collapsed and was swept away, taking with it all the family’s possessions. Córdoba, a tall, thin man who looks older than his 56 years, escaped to higher ground, along with his wife and two daughters aged 26 and 23. But their livestock – hens, sheep, cows and guinea pigs – all perished, along with the crops of corn and potatoes they relied on for their livelihood. “We’ve lost everything,” Córdoba said. “I really don’t know what will happen to us now.”

http://filer.livinginperu.com/features/huarcapay2.jpg900675 Inés Córdova, left, with her daughter and two elderly Huacarpay residents. click to enlarge

http://filer.livinginperu.com/features/huarcapay6.jpg900675 Living in tents in Huacarpay. click to enlarge

45-year-old Inés Córdova has a similar story to tell. She lived in Huacarpay with her four children, aged 11, 13, 21 and 24. Unlike most houses in the village hers remained standing, so she was able to keep living on the first floor. But the ground floor was completely submerged. Standing in donated jeans, a cardigan and sunhat, she tearfully described how all her belongings were destroyed and how she lost the 80 guinea pigs she bred to make ends meet; guinea pigs are a culinary delicacy in the Peruvian Andes.

A month after the floods, the whole population of Huacarpay is living in a tent city on a hill above the waterlogged, collapsed village, relying on donations of food, clothing, water and blankets. Thanks to the efforts of relief organizations such as Plan International and the independent charitable group La Casa de Mayten, the villagers have managed to create an impressive degree of order amidst the chaos. They have constructed a roofed cooking area, where food for the whole community is prepared in three huge stainless steel saucepans. Residents take turns cooking according to which block they lived in in their village. Donations from individuals and charitable organizations are meticulously catalogued and stored, ready for distribution throughout the village. Men, women and children are all pitching in to build new latrines. Nine committees have been formed covering areas of water and electricity, health, education, hygiene, security, the community kitchen, rehousing, rubbish collection, even public Relations. A temporary tent school has also been built to educate the village’s 300 children.

http://filer.livinginperu.com/features/huarcapay3.jpg900675 Huacarpay after the floods. click to enlarge

http://filer.livinginperu.com/features/huarcapay5.jpg900675 The communal kitchen. click to enlarge

Help from the authorities has so far been sketchy. The Peruvian Ministry of Health has set up tents on site to provide medical support and advice on health and hygiene. The Chamber of Commerce has donated mattresses to replace the thin sleeping mats the villagers made do with before. The Municipality of Lima has sent a team to fumigate the flooded village – with so many dead animals around and pools of stagnant water attracting mosquitoes, they are worried about the spread of dengue fever. There are also plans afoot to relocate the villagers to safer ground.

But the villagers still feel the authorities are not doing enough to help them. They don’t have enough water for drinking or washing and relief organizations are worried that this could lead to the spread of serious illness. “The cases of diarrhea have doubled and continue to grow, as well as skin conditions due to use of contaminated lake water to bathe, wash clothes etc,” says Mayten Sanchez, director of the Peruvian charitable organization La Casa de Mayten. “Thank life we have not lost any one yet but....I suspect that if the situation doesn't improve, between disease and depression we will lose a few elders which would be a tragedy.” 

Relief workers are also concerned about the impending cold weather. In April “las heladas” begin. These are waves of freezing cold air whipped up by strong winds in the high Andes. Every year “las heladas” claim lives in the Cusco region, in communities who do not have adequate protection against the cold. A Euro-Peruvian private company has donated 150 reinforced tents with water-resistant plastic, which will be home to 150 families. But there are another 165 families in Huacarpay, including small children and the elderly, who are living in tents with inadequate protection against the cold.

Since the morning on Jan. 25, the village of Huacarpay has received a second and a third devastating blow. After days and nights of incessant rain the village was flooded again, on Feb. 21 and March 1. This pushed the already desperate villagers to breaking point and they took to the streets to protest, setting up road blocks and closing off one of the main carriageways into Cusco. With traffic at a standstill, they refused to move until the authorities responded to their call and entered into a dialogue with them.

Many families in the Cuzco area live in extreme poverty and depend on farming to make ends meet. Among the crops they grow are corn, potatoes, quinoa, beans and wheat. The Regional Government of Cusco estimates that around 10,000 hectares of crop land have been destroyed and another 5,000 damaged. Around 15,000 livestock have perished. Five thousand houses have collapsed, another 6,500 have been damaged and almost 25,000 Peruvians are now homeless, according to government figures. According to local officials and news reports, at least 35 people have died in the floods and landslides and many more are missing.
 
The effects of this natural disaster look set to be felt for a long time to come. Work is under way to rebuild the railway to Machu Picchu, so Peru’s main source of tourism revenue could be up and running in a matter of months. But for the people of Huacarpay, and others who have lost their homes and livelihood, the wait could be much longer. It could be years before they are able to get their lives back on track.

To find out how you can help the people of Huacarpay, visit La Casa de Mayten and Plan International.

tags : destroyed village struggles floods Cusco Peru

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7 Comments

# sally smith says :
11 March, 2010 [ 05:51 ]

I am scheduled with a travel agency to visit cusco/Machu Picchu within the next few months.  The travel agency tells me that the railway has been repaired and within the next two weeks they are sending their next group to Cusco/MP.  I am concerned that there will be few motels to stay in, scarce food, and perhaps a question of traveler's safety, in addition to an expensive trip that doesn't reach it's main attraction.  What is REALLY going on in Cusco??  or is the travel agency feeding me misinfo??

# grace Lee says :
12 March, 2010 [ 10:18 ]

I spoke with some friends from Cuzco and they told the reason why ther Alan Garcia government is turning a blind eye on the people because they did not cast their vote for him /his government. Now it's time to punish them. How could  humanity be mixed with politics ? Do these politicians have hearts ? Can't they not see thier own blood is suffering and yet they do nothing but putting the burden on foreigners to  provide help ? Shame on you , Alan Garcia ! You donate quickly to Haiti because it bears your name but not the poorest in your own country. I thought being a Prime Minister or President of a country is to love and take care of your people. I guess this is not the case ! I warn you, when you push too far and there is no way to go but dead end, be prepare to face the force bounced back to you. You have no idea what desperation can do to one's mind and determination. The Inca is tough people !!

# David N says :
12 March, 2010 [ 02:54 ]

The government's all tied up at the moment...lining their pockets and building an electric train with whatever's left.

# Jerry Wills says :
18 March, 2010 [ 12:44 ]

In regards to Sally Smith's question about going to the Cusco area -- I would stay away for now. I have friends who live there telling me the infrastructure is nowhere near ready for tourists. Unless you are going to help those in need, don't go right now.

# Jillian Stansbury says :
18 March, 2010 [ 05:40 ]

I live in Cuzco and believe it is true that the trains to MP will be up and running soon, and the hotels and restaurants will be dying for your business.  Fear not, come to Cuzco! 

# Jessie North says :
19 March, 2010 [ 04:27 ]

Hi Sally,
The town of Cusco itself hasn't been hugely affected. When I was there just over a month ago all the hotels were open and running normally, there is plenty of food and I don't think it's any less safe than usual. As for Machu Picchu, the minister of tourism has said that it will be open to visitors from 1st April. But as far as I know, they are still repairing the train tracks, so you may want to double check that with your travel agent.

# Kris Thomas says :
23 March, 2010 [ 01:25 ]

The train from Aguas Calientes (the town directly below Machu Picchu) will be up and running April 1.  My friends in Peru say the best thing to do to help them is to come and spend money in their country as a tourist.  Peru in general, and the Cusco/Sacred Valley area in particular, rely on our tourism dollars!  Kris@incatrailhiking.com

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