Colca Canyon Earthquake

Old Aug 15th, 2016, 01:19 PM
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Colca Canyon Earthquake

An earthquake struck on Sunday evening in the Colca area killing 9 people http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articl...-governor-says

Our thoughts are with the families of those affected. We arrived yesterday and are due to head out that way on Wednesday. This will be our third attempt to visit the canyon. The previous two were foiled by earthquakes!
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Old Aug 15th, 2016, 02:00 PM
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crellston I though about you, just seeing the article now in the LA papers.

Apparently a US tourist was killed in an adobe hotel in Yanque...(not Killawasi).

http://www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-p...nap-story.html
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Old Aug 15th, 2016, 02:10 PM
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Er..the highway from Arequipa to Colca Canyon is blocked, as well as the sector to the Condor overlook...and it's recommended that tourism operators suspend their services.

http://elcomercio.pe/sociedad/arequi...mbien&e=titulo

I hope the staff at 3B can get you sorted with current info and rescheduling as needed.

And of course thoughts with those who have lost homes and loved ones.
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Old Aug 16th, 2016, 04:21 AM
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Thanks for the additional info mlgb. We had just arrived in Arequipa so 3B wouldn't have Ben able to assist ( but have no doubt they would have been excellent - the best staff of any place we have stayed in a long time!)

Managed to contact Killawasi overnight who confirmed that our tour is still on, so they are picking us up tomorrow. Apparently the place where the US tourist was killed is just 200m from Killawasi. Condolences to the family, friends and all others affected.
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Old Aug 16th, 2016, 10:05 AM
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Glad to hear you've arrived safe and sound.

I read in El Commercio that they have built a temporary bypass road and are working to clear the main spot.

Hopeful that there are no significant aftershocks.
What a welcome for your friends!
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Old Aug 16th, 2016, 01:11 PM
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Spoke to the iPeru people this morning. Apparently the bypass open. Yanque main plaza is now home to a lot of homeless people living in plastic shelters. As for aftershocks, the sirens went off in the early hours but we didn't feel any aftershocks. Our friends are taking it in their stride. NB I have no intention of taking them horse riding with me - just asking for trouble!
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Old Aug 18th, 2016, 09:27 AM
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Well we made it to Yanque! A couple of hours delay on the road into the canyon whilst they cleared the rocks from the road. Yanque is a bit of a mess houses, missing walls and roofs, lots of rubble in the streets and large cracks down the side of the churches bell tower.

The main square has been turned into a tented village to house the homeless and food trucks are doing a great job of feeding everyone. We are staying at Killawasi where the perimeter wall has been destroyed, but apart from that, very little damage apart from some missing plaster on our ceiling.

One has to admire the resilience of the Peruvian people and their government who are dealing admirably with the situation. Heartrending to see some of the older folks in tears when I took a walk around the village yesterday evening. I guess some of them have lost everything. The kids, being kids, seem to be taking everything in their stride and treating camping out in the square as an adventure, playing football ...

Took a drive out to the Condor viewing point this morning. Saw quite a few rock slides across the road but only one minor delay. We saw loads of condors!!!

Our third attempt to visit the Colca Canyon and so glad we made this time. It really is an amazing place.
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Old Aug 18th, 2016, 12:43 PM
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Thanks for the report. It would be tough to see the impact on people who don't have much to start with. It sounds like the official response has been pretty good as those things go.

I remember a lot of complaints about the Peruvian Red Cross after the big Ica quake. I had a yard sale and sold a big canvas tent, it turned out the lady was collecting them to bring to Peru!

Keep that blog up to date!
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Old Aug 18th, 2016, 09:24 PM
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Thank you for your post. We will be there in a month and I was so surprised by this. It must be heartbreaking to see, but much of the livelihood I am assuming comes from tourists. So we are still planning on coming.
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Old Dec 1st, 2016, 01:57 AM
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Finally got around to posting on our blog re Colca and Arequipa. Here is the link

https://accidentalnomads.com/category/peru/
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