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American Morning

Earthquake Rocks Peru; Volcano Erupts in Philippines

Aired June 25, 2001 - 09:01   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: We're going to begin this morning with the aftermath of two natural disasters that hit over the weekend. A 7.9 magnitude earthquake rocked the southern part of Peru on Saturday. At this hour, at least 70 people have been confirmed dead, hundreds more are injured.

And in the Philippines, a state of calamity has been declared after the eruption yesterday of the Mayon volcano. Ash and rocks the size of trucks have forced at least 30,000 people from their homes.

CNN's Maria Ressa joins us now, live, by phone. She's on the road to Manila. Just a few hours ago, she was in the volcano's danger zone -- Maria.

MARIA RESSA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Leon, I'm actually still near the base of the volcano. As the eruptions on Sunday really were a spectacular sight, even better that authorities gave ample warning. It raised alert level 4 on Saturday as the lava began to fall down the near perfect cone of the volcano. That has made this Mayon a top tourist attraction. The Philippines on Sunday, authorities hit -- raised alert level 5. That was when the eruptions were ongoing.

At least 11,000 people on Sunday were evacuated in a relatively orderly manner. Everyone here was quite prepared, particularly since they've had lots of practices. This is the Philippines' most active volcano, recently erupting in 1994 and February last year.

Having said that, it does remain quite dangerous. The eruption spewed out pyroclastic flows. That's a mixture of ash, gas and volcanic debris. Traveling as fast as 60 kilometers per hour, it contained, as you said, rocks the size of trucks and hit temperatures up to 1,100 degrees Fahrenheit. The government did declare a short state of calamity to free up funds to feed and shelter the tens of thousands of people. That number is expected to grow -- Leon.

HARRIS: Maria Ressa reporting live this morning.

Now turning to Peru, amid the rubble of collapsed homes, hopes are fading of finding any more survivors after Saturday's powerful earthquake. So far at least 70 people have died and the threat of more aftershocks has forced many to seek shelter in parks and stadiums.

Journalist Claudia Cisneros is joining us now, live, on the phone from Lima with the very latest -- Claudia.

CLAUDIA CISNEROS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Leon, two days after the earthquake, Peruvians are just beginning to learn the magnitude of the damage caused by this 7.9 magnitude quake. Rescue workers are working hard to rush aid to cities damaged and especially to rural remote areas where access has been even more difficult due to landslide block in the road. This is the reason why many people have been stranded and also why aid hasn't been taken fast enough.

The death toll at this time, like you said, is 71. The injuries are now more than 1,000 and the homeless at least 10,000. The people -- these homeless people have camped out in the streets and public parks, in some cases, near freezing temperatures since it is winter and in many cases, these people live in high altitudes where temperatures are even lower -- Leon.

HARRIS: Claudia, can you tell us what the situation is in regard to providing aid for those people down there? Do you see the Red Cross out there or is there any other international agency there on the scene?

CISNEROS: Yes, we've seen -- we've seen the Red Cross, the National Civil Defense Institute, the fire department, many, many people in the military -- many people working to rush aid and medicines into all these people, but it's definitely not been enough. We've heard accounts from the affected citizens this morning, from all these little towns around the main cities, complaining about help not getting soon enough. There are basic requests for tents because, in many cases, their homes have been completely flattened. And they're also requesting food and water supplies in this area where electricity, phone lines and the water had been cut off -- Leon.

HARRIS: Here's hoping for the best for them there. It's journalist Claudia Cisneros, we thank you very much for that update from Peru.

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