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Deadly Negligence: Peru’s Red Cross & Cold Deaths in Andes
At last count (mid August), 514 Peruvians had died of pneumonia brought on by extreme cold this year, most of them children under five. Most reasonable people would call that an emergency. Not Peru’s Red Cross, however. In a bulletin issued August 4, 2009, the Peruvian Red Cross (PRC) issued a general statement about the cold deaths in Puno, noting the low temperatures, the rise in pneumonia cases and the deaths of “113” children (a number much lower than that cited by other news sources in early August). After low-balling the number of deaths, the bulletin explained that the PRC “has been assisting the affected people with medicines, blankets and food items. Additionally, the…
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Citizen Journalists Respond to Cold Deaths in Andes
These are the things I think of when I read the news reports on deaths in the highlands -- the humble, hard-working people who live at such a remove from the "civilized" world and who can be helped at not that much cost, if only there are willing souls to climb the mountain paths and meet them halfway.
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Sisters from Pucarumi — claimed by deadly cold spell?
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.
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Susan Saradon Hugs a Llama to Ease World Hunger
Actress and humanitarian Susan Sarandon hugs a llama pal for Heifer International (Can anyone resist a marketing campaign that features these photogenic Andean camelids?) This is a charity project I like. Actress Susan Sarandon is promoting an organization that battles world hunger by donating dairy cows and other farm animals to subsistence farmers. It’s a simple idea and one that really can help ease poverty in areas where people struggle to nourish themselves. If you have ever visited the puna in Peru, you have seen for yourself how disadvantaged people in far-flung regions scrape by on the paltriest amounts of food. Here is Saradon’s essay from the CNN “Planet in Peril” blog: Susan Sarandon Actress and…
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Paris Hilton & Bikini Babes to Model at … Machu Picchu?
Every celeb these days wants to walk the Inca catwalk…. Yesterday, Spanish- and English-language media outlets gushed over the announcement that a high-profile photo shoot is scheduled to take place November 4 at Machu Picchu. A dozen Maxim bikini models will parade around the former Inca citadel in high heels and thongs. Leading the stampede may be Paris Hilton, although she hasn’t signed any contracts yet to appear in Machu Picchu Bikini Peru 2008. There will be fuzzy llamas and locals in ponchos and a Peruvian fashion photographer behind the viewfinder, to ensure that the entire process is autentico. I am having a hard time getting excited about this. Yes, Paris…
