VZCZCXRO8904
PP RUEHRN
DE RUEHPE #2984/01 2481817
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 051817Z SEP 07
FM AMEMBASSY LIMA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6714
INFO RUEHSJ/AMEMBASSY SAN JOSE 1968
RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA 5033
RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA 7561
RUEHBU/AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES 3082
RUEHLP/AMEMBASSY LA PAZ 4492
RUEHQT/AMEMBASSY QUITO 1429
RUEHSG/AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO 1463
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS 0742
RUEHAC/AMEMBASSY ASUNCION 1790
RUEHMN/AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO 9293
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 0533
RUEHRN/US MISSION UN ROME
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0165
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 LIMA 002984 
 
SIPDIS 
 
AIDAC 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE/WHA FOR WHA/AND, BTHOMAS 
STATE ALSO PASS TO USAID 
USAID/W FOR A/AID HFORE 
USAID/DCHA FOR MHESS, GGOTTLIEB 
AID/W for DCHA/OFDA 
DCHA/OFDA FOR KLUU, AFERRARA, ACONVERY, RTHAYER, SBISWAS 
DCHA/FFP WHAMMINK 
USAID/LAC FOR AA/LAC, LAC/SA, MKARBELING 
SAN JOSE FOR TCALLAGHAN 
NSC for TSHORTLEY, PMARCHAM 
BRUSSELS FOR USAID PLERNER 
GENEVA FOR NYKYLOH 
NEW YORK FOR TMALY 
USMISSION UN ROME FOR RNEWBERG 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID PE XM XR ECON ETRD SENV ENRG USTR
 
SUBJECT: PERU - EARTHQUAKE: SITUATION REPORT #5 
 
REF: A) LIMA 2868  B) LIMA 2897 C) LIMA 2951 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED, PLEASE HANDLE ACCORDINGLY 
 
¶1.  (U) Summary.  Between August 28 and 29, the USAID team, 
comprising representatives from USAID/Peru and USAID's Office of 
U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID/OFDA), conducted assessments 
of earthquake-affected districts in Huaytara Province, Huancavelica 
Region, and Yauyos Province, Lima Region.  The USAID team concluded 
that the main needs of Huancavelica and Yauyos provinces are the 
rehabilitation of irrigation canals, which are crucial for the 
area's agriculture-based economy.  In Yauyos Province, the team 
found that the districts of Chocos, Madean, and Vinac require 
shelter assistance. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) During an August 27 coordination meeting, the mayors from 
the affected districts of Pisco Province, Ica Region, confirmed 
priority needs in their districts, which include shelter, food, 
heavy machinery for rubble removal, and rehabilitation of irrigation 
canals.  The USAID team emphasized that the meeting was crucial as a 
turning point in the response.  Through this and subsequent 
meetings, the Government of Peru's (GOP) National Civil Defense 
Institute (INDECI) is working to empower districts' mayors, which 
for the most part were recently elected, to take leadership in 
providing damage assessment information and articulating the needs 
of their communities to the GOP and the international and national 
relief community.  However, the USAID team noted that there is 
consensus between INDECI and relief agencies that the mayors' 
figures need to be more precise.  End summary. 
 
------------------- 
Huaytara Province 
------------------- 
 
¶3.  (U) Located in the Andes Mountains, Huaytara Province is the 
largest in Huancavelica Region and has an estimated population of 
24,500 people.  On August 28 and 29, the USAID assessment team 
visited the districts of Huaytara, Huayacundo, and Cusicancha.  The 
districts' mayors reported that 106 houses in Huaytara, 26 in 
Huayacundo, and 50 in Cusicancha are uninhabitable.  However, the 
USAID team did not observe destroyed houses in these districts, 
although adobe houses showed some damage in the walls.  The team saw 
no tents in the districts and noted that families are still living 
in their houses.  In Huaytara District, the police station suffered 
extensive damage and is not functioning, while two schools have 
suffered damage, but remain operational.  The high school in 
Huayacundo, which has 56 students, suffered extensive damage, with 
three out of five classrooms structurally deficient and unsafe to 
use.  Cusicancha's school, which serves 145 students, also suffered 
extensive damage and is not operational. 
 
¶4.  (U) Local authorities from the three districts reported that the 
earthquake's main damage was to productive infrastructure, in 
particular, irrigation canals were damaged or destroyed.  The water 
and electricity systems in all the districts visited are 
functioning.  The team noted that the Pisco-Huaytara road was 
cleared following landslides resulting from the earthquake, but the 
Ministry of Transport and Communications is currently clearing the 
 
LIMA 00002984  002 OF 005 
 
 
section of the road linking Huaytara to Ayacucho in the east.  The 
roads to Huayacundo and Cusicancha did not have any damage. 
According to the USAID assessment team, the main needs in the 
districts visited are the establishment of temporary classrooms and 
the rehabilitation and reconstruction of irrigation canals. 
 
------------------ 
Yauyos Province 
------------------ 
 
¶5.  (U) In Yauyos Province, Lima Region, the team visited the 
districts of Cacra, Chocos, Azangaro, Madean, and Vinac, which have 
an estimated total of 1,620 houses.  The team concluded that the 
districts of Chocos, Madean, and Vinac require assistance on shelter 
issues.  In Chocos, 120 out of 250 houses, or 48 percent, were 
reported uninhabitable due to extensive damage.  The team found that 
the quality of houses in Chocos was inferior to that of the other 
districts visited, suggesting that the district is poorer than 
neighboring ones.  According to Vinac's mayor, more than 46 percent 
of houses - 200 out of 433 houses - are uninhabitable.  The USAID 
team observed that some residents are sheltering in 10 small camping 
tents in the district's main square; the mayor reported that other 
families are also living in this type of tent in other areas of the 
district. 
 
¶6.  (U) In Madean, the mayor reported that more than 25 percent of 
houses are uninhabitable, and the USAID tea observed extensive 
damage to houses in the neighborhood near the district's main 
square.  Azangaro's mayor reported that more than 25 percent of the 
district's houses are uninhabitable.  However, based on observation, 
the USAID team could not confirm damage to that extent.  Cacra's 
houses suffered the least damage, with only 10 percent of houses 
reported uninhabitable.  An assessment of damage to schools in the 
districts is ongoing, according to the mayors. 
 
¶7.  (U) All the districts visited have access to water for human 
consumption.  However, since landslides resulting from the 
earthquake damaged or buried a large proportion of irrigation canals 
in the highlands, many communities are using secondary sources, such 
as springs, to obtain drinking water.  The team noted that the 
rehabilitation of the canals is important for restoring livelihoods 
in all the districts.  Community leaders in Cacra emphasized this 
issue, noting that the community would be able to restore the canals 
with 50 bags of cement.  Electricity and telephone services in all 
the districts visited are working normally. 
 
¶8.  (U) The team found that even prior to the earthquake, normal 
access to Chocos, Azangaro, Madean, and Vinac is via a track cut in 
the mountains; progress is slow under the best of circumstances. 
The 200 km round-trip journey from Canete District to the other 
surrounding districts took eight hours for the team to complete. 
On August 29, the team visited Cacra, which is approximately 90 km 
from Canete and closer than the other districts, but far more 
difficult to access.  Debris and rocks had blocked the road to Cacra 
since the earthquake and the USAID team's vehicle was the first to 
enter the district after the road was cleared.  The biggest concern 
for Cacra's population is the road.  As producers of perishable 
products, such as avocados and plums, Cacra's residents depend on 
 
LIMA 00002984  003 OF 005 
 
 
uninterrupted access to get the produce to market on time.  The 
USAID team noted that the district's situation in this regard is 
precarious. 
 
----------------- 
Canete Province 
----------------- 
 
¶9.  (U) On August 29, the USAID assessment team attended a meeting 
of the mayors of the earthquake-affected districts of Canete 
Province and the Regional President of Lima.  The mayors emphasized 
that their districts' greatest concern is classrooms, of which 255 
are needed in the entire province.  According to the mayors' 
reports, 1,900 out of 6,750 houses, representing 28 percent, in the 
province are uninhabitable.  The USAID team observed extensive 
damage to housing in passing through Lunahuana and Zuniga districts, 
as well as downtown Canete. (Ref. A) (Note:  On September 4, the 
USAID team visited Lunahuana and indicated that the district's water 
system is intermittently functioning with service provided on a 
rotating basis to different sectors of the district.  District 
authorities reported that water service in the outlying towns is yet 
to be restored, and the district is providing water to these areas 
via a tanker truck.  The GOP's temporary work program for 
earthquake-affected populations started in Lunahuana on September 3 
and will employ approximately 25 people in each of the district's 10 
outlying towns for 21 days.  End note.) 
 
----------------- 
Pisco Province 
----------------- 
 
¶10.  (SBU) On August 27, USAID representatives attended a 
coordination meeting with the mayors of all the earthquake-affected 
districts of Pisco Province, including Huancano, Humay, 
Independencia, Paracas, Pisco, San Andres, San Clemente, and Tupac 
Amaru Inca.  Other meeting attendees included staff from INDECI and 
representatives from the Ministries of Health, Women and Social 
Development, and Agriculture, as well as U.N. agencies.  Each mayor 
reported on the latest numbers of affected people and damaged and 
destroyed houses, as well as main needs in his district.  The USAID 
team emphasized that the meeting was crucial as a turning point in 
the response.  Through this and subsequent meetings, INDECI is 
working to empower the mayors, which for the most part were recently 
elected, to take leadership in providing damage assessment 
information and articulating the needs of their communities to the 
GOP and the international relief community.  However, the USAID team 
noted that there is consensus between INDECI and relief agencies 
that the mayors' figures need to be more precise.  Following the 
meeting, General Luis Felipe Palomino, INDECI's Director, requested 
that the mayors verify the numbers provided.  A few days later, the 
mayors recognized the weakness of their preliminary estimates and 
plan to take steps to provide more accurate figures.  The National 
Institute of Statistics and Information's (INEI) ongoing census of 
the earthquake-affected regions will help strengthen the mayors' 
figures. 
 
¶11.  (U) In Pisco District - the province's largest with an 
estimated population of 80,000 - the main needs are food, shelter, 
 
LIMA 00002984  004 OF 005 
 
 
and rubble removal, according to the mayor. 
 
¶12.  (U) In Independencia District, which has an estimated 15,000 
people, the mayor reported that the main needs are tents, blankets, 
food, and psychosocial support. The mayor noted that heavy machinery 
is needed to rehabilitate irrigation canals as the main livelihood 
of the district's residents is agriculture. 
 
¶13.  (U) According to Huancano's mayor, 156 houses were destroyed 
and 390 were affected in the district, leaving 2,097 people in need 
of food, latrines, 300 tents, and 4,000 blankets.  Two displaced 
persons camps in the district are sheltering 1,000 residents.  The 
district's agriculture and livestock livelihoods were seriously 
affected, with the earthquake damaging or destroying 100 percent of 
the irrigation canals.  (Note:  These figures confirm those reported 
by the USAID assessment team on August 18 and 19. (Ref. A) End 
note.) 
 
¶14.  (U) In Humay, the mayor reported that affected families 
affected are living close to their houses as no temporary camps have 
been established.  The population's main needs are tents, of which 
the mayor requested 1,000, and machinery to rehabilitate irrigation 
canals. 
 
¶15.  (U) In Paracas District, where the economy is driven by tourism 
and seafood restaurants, residents were affected by a 30-centimeter 
tsunami produced by the earthquake.  The small tsunami affected the 
 
SIPDIS 
district's sewerage system and the tourism and seafood sector. 
(Note:  The USAID team did not observe extensive infrastructure 
damage in Paracas.  End note.) 
 
¶16.  (U) San Andres District's mayor reported that residents are 
sheltering in the displaced persons camp in the district's stadium. 
(Note:  Ambassador McKinley visited the camp on August 29. (Ref. C) 
End note.)  The mayor noted that the main needs are food, blankets, 
and tents. 
 
¶17.  (U) According to San Clemente's mayor, a large proportion of 
the 24,000 residents are affected and require water, food, blankets, 
tents, plastic sheeting, and psychosocial support.  (Note: 
Ambassador McKinley visited San Clemente on August 29. (Ref. C)  End 
note.)  The mayor reported that the water system was damaged and the 
district, which has the second largest population in Pisco Province, 
requires assistance to provide water to residents.  (Note:  During 
an August 30 meeting with the USAID team, Ica's Regional President 
requested USAID assistance for San Clemente's water system.  On the 
same day, the USAID team visited San Clemente, met with the mayor 
and INDECI's regional representative, and coordinated with the 
non-governmental organization Samaritan's Purse, which is currently 
providing assistance in the district.  The team found that the 
Peruvian Red Cross is supplying water through tankers and the 
Peruvian company Ransa has provided a 30,000-liter water bladder. 
On the day of the team's visit, the Peruvian Red Cross brought two 
7,000-liter bladders, donated by the Canadian International 
Development Agency, for water distribution in other sectors of the 
district.  In addition, the Peruvian parastatal company Drinking 
Water and Sewerage Service of Pisco informed the USAID team that it 
planned to run tests of the water system to determine the extent of 
 
LIMA 00002984  005 OF 005 
 
 
the damage on September 2 and 3.  The USAID team plans to visit San 
Clemente on September 5 to evaluate the situation and determine 
whether additional assistance is necessary.  End note.) 
 
¶18.  (U) In Tupac Amaru Inca District, the mayor reported that five 
displaced persons camps have been established.  The district's main 
needs are food, tents, blankets, and plastic sheeting, as well as 
heavy machinery for rubble removal. 
 
¶19.  (U) Since the August 27 meeting, the districts' mayors have 
been in contact with national and international relief agencies to 
address the needs identified in their communities. 
 
MCKINLEY