Heavy snows prompted the closing of highways in Peru’s southern states of Arequipa and Puno yesterday.
Snowstorms lasting over 12 hours yesterday blanketed the highland regions of Arequipa and Puno and temperatures dropped to below 0° Fahrenheit.
Areas above 10,000 feet in altitude accumulated between six to 12 inches of snow, prompting the closure of highways between Arequipa and Puno. Over 30 miles of the Arequipa-Puno highway in Arequipa’s Caylloma province was closed for over 12 hours yesterday, stranding 2,000 vehicles.
The road was opened at 11 a.m. yesterday and regional governments dispatched trucks to remove the snow.
While transit is currently restored, the harsh weather conditions are expected to persist through the weekend.
Local governments in Puno provided sheet metal and other raw materials to dozens of families whose homes were damaged by strong winds.
The harsh winter in Puno has seen 15 children dead of pneumonia and respiratory diseases, as well as six miners killed in an avalanche.
Sources
Agua nieve afecta a zonas ubicadas por encima de los 4,000 metros (Andina)
Puno: entregan ayuda humanitaria a damnificados por vientos fuertes (Andina)
Heladas siguen golpeando la sierra sur del país [FOTOS] (El Comercio)
Carretera Arequipa-Puno estuvo bloqueada por más de 12 horas (El Comercio)
Intensa nevada cae sobre Puno, Arequipa y Cusco (La Republica)
Frío, lluvia, nevadas y poco sol para la región Puno hasta el fin de semana (Los Andes)
Por nevada quedan bloqueados 2 000 carros en la carretera Arequipa – Puno (El Buho)
Nevada interrumpe tránsito en carretera Arequipa – Puno (El Pueblo)
