Situation
1. At 11:40:58 PM UTC/GMT (Greenwich time) 6:34:56 PM local time on August 15th, an earthquake measuring 7.9 degrees in the Richter scale struck the Department of Ica. The epicentre was 25 miles (61 kilometres) west-northwest of Chincha Alta, Peru, and 90 miles (161 kilometres) south-southeast of Lima, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The epicentre was 30.2 km depth (18.8 miles). The effects were also strongly felt in Lima capital.
2. The last official report issued by the National Institute of Civil Defence (INDECI) informed about the situation up to August 28th, 23:00 hrs:
519 dead
1,366 wounded
58,581 houses destroyed according to Peruvian Government preliminary assessments.
13,585 houses affected.
103 hospitals affected.
14 hospitals destroyed according to Peruvian Government preliminary assessments.
National Response
On September 13th the Ministry of Interior, Mr. Luis Alva Castro, and the Director of National Police, General David Rodríguez Segeu, supervised the dispatch of 13 tons of humanitarian aid to the areas of Pisco, Tantará and Huaytará (Region of Huancavelica).
Similarly, Mr. Alva Castro also informed that 2,000 police officers and about 200 patrols are reinforcing security in the affected areas in order to avoid possible plunder and other types of insecure situations.
The Ministry of Women and Social Affairs (MIMDES) have reported on September 13th to have distributed food aid to 278,000 families in the districts of Imperial and San Luis in the Cañete province.
MIMDES also reports that it will facilitate the reconstruction of two community centers to provide services to African-Peruvian communities in areas near Chincha.
On September 7th the Ministry of Health (MOH) reported to have dispatched 29 tons of medicines and to have moved 1,283 patients from affected areas to hospitals in Lima. Furthermore, MOH informed about the deployment of some 495 health professionals in the areas of Ica, Pisco and Chincha, where medical personnel supported the efforts to prevent epidemiological outbreaks.
MOH also reported that the Blood Donation Campaign mobilized 2,730 blood donors, for a total of 1,636 blood samples, of which 511 were dispatched to Pisco, Chincha and Ica.
MOH also reports that the new hospitals to be built in Lima and the cities devastated by the earthquake will be provided with helicopter air bases to facilitate transportation in emergency cases.
On September 13th the Minister of Housing, Construction and Sanitation (MHCS) inaugurated with the Ambassador of Uruguay a water-processing plant that will benefit the population of San Luis de Cañete. The new plant, with the daily capacity to produce up to 400,000 liters of drinkable water, will assist the needs of more than 10,000 people.
Similarly, Mr. Garrido Lecca met with local mayors to discuss the situation of the local population in the aftermath of the earthquake.
On September 13th, the Ministry of Education (MINEDU) has declared Pisco as a model city for education after the reconstruction and rehabilitation phase coordinated by the Ministry of Housing, Construction and Sanitation and the FORSUR.
The Vice Minister of Institutional Educational Management, have declared that the new school constructions will abide to modern educational criteria and that they will be smaller in size and safer.
On September 12th MINEDU informed the authorization to directors of Private and Public Educational Institutions to accept the enrollment in their schools of any child from the affected areas. MINEDU informed that enrollment should be allowed with only a parental declaration from the child family stating that they are under emergency status.