Sisters from Pucarumi — claimed by deadly cold spell?
A girl in Pucarumi carries her little sister on her back. At least six children under age 5 in her valley have died from extreme cold since March, my trekking guide tells me. (Sept. 2008 photo by Barbara Drake)
Spoke to Alberto last night, our guide at Qoyllur Rit’i and around the Mount Ausangate area.
He told El Fotografo and I that he’s heard of six children under age 5 dying in his area (towns of Tinqui, Upis, Pacchanta) due to extreme cold snap. The BBC ran a story on this several days ago.
I met many children on my trek around Ausangate last September. Lively kids who run around in thin sweaters and sandals made of rubber tires. Their parents herd llamas and alpacas and grow potatoes, or at least try to. The kids live in adobe or stone huts that are heated with llama dung, since they live above the tree line. At night people huddle under alpaca wool blankets and try to keep warm together. Lots of kids have colds and respiratory ailments, and when you take a little kid’s picture, he’ll usually have some snot around his nose. That’s life on the puna.
This girl, above, was running around with her little sister on her back last September. I wonder if they’re still alive? I’m worried.
Barbara
I am an American writer who lived in Lima for seven years (2007-2014), where I covered Andean traditions, melting glaciers and daily life in the capital for Miami Herald, MSNBC and Huffington Post. I now live and work in northern Florida where I champion climate change advocacy and compassionate, affordable eldercare.
7 Comments
Stuart
🙁
Ward Welvaert
That’s a great picture. Too bad life in the highlands can be so tough and the rural areas are so neglected.
Barb
Thanks, Ward. It’s a good picture picture the girls were so open and liked being photographed.
Yes, life in highlands is tough — as you know well, living in Cusco. Hope all is well with the baby.
Iñigo
It’s a shame that campesinos die from the cold in the high Andes and yet the Peruvian government does not allow the shipment of old clothes to Peru (that could help the campesinos). Yep, it’s true, if you go to the post office and try to mail used clothes to Peru you will be informed that Peru does not accept such shipments. The idea is that we discard old clothes in such great quantities that if they are allowed to enter poorer regions in countries they adversely impact the local textile economy. It would be nice if some sort of compromise could be met so that warm clothes could be gotten to people who clearly need them.
Jimmy
Hi Barbara, im jimmy, friend of Tommaso Fiachino. Do you remember? when we met in the park of Miraflores near to the houselight.Well i would like to meet an emerican group for improve my english, maybe you know one, its so important for me to speak very well. Please if you know an american group or peole who want to learn spanish, answer me please because i think that the best way for to learn is speaking a lot.
I would like that you tell me if you know, thank so much
Jimmy.
Barb
Hi, Jimmy.
Yes, I remember meeting you by the lighthouse. You were helping Tommaso film that day, right?
I don’t know of any informal groups that meet for people to improve their English, but you might try putting a message up at one of the hostals, like Loki, where there are many English-speaking tourists. They will want to improve their Spanish and they might want to “trade skills,” so to speak.
Loki has several locations. I know there is one in Miraflores.:)
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