Death toll rises to 60 in Peru cold spell

LIMA (AFP) Jul 15, 2003
The death toll from the extreme cold temperatures in Peru's southeast has risen to at least 60, all children, the national weather service said Monday.

All lived in a high-altitude region between the ancient Inca capital of Cuzco and Lake Titicaca.

Local authorities in the area have launched an urgent appeal for aid, saying some 60,000 people have become ill with lung infections due to the extreme cold.

Temperatures have slipped to 23 degrees below zero Celsius (nine degrees below zero Fahrenheit), and forecasters are predicting no relief from the bitter cold in the coming days.

TERRA.WIRE