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CNN Sunday Morning

70 Percent of Homes Destroyed by Quake in Arequipa, Peru

Aired June 24, 2001 - 09:02   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.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: More now on our top story, the powerful earthquake that struck southern Peru. There's a massive search today for survivors. Arequipa was the -- was hit the hardest and the mayor says 70 percent of the homes there were damaged or destroyed.

Journalist Claudia Cisneros joins us now on the phone from Lima with the latest.

What can you tell us, Claudia?

CLAUDIA CISNEROS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, entering president Valentin Paniagua is at this time flying the damaged area in an Air Force helicopter. He had flown over Arequipa's down town earlier this morning and is headed right now to Moquegua -- the city of Moquegua -- at this time. The city is said to be the hardest hit. We can also say that initial international aid has been offered by countries such as Spain.

Hundreds of people in the southern areas of Peru have spent the night on the streets and some in public parks -- some of them because they were left homeless, others fearful of the aftershocks that have been felt since Saturday afternoon's earthquake.

Some 70 aftershocks have been registered so far. Some of them measuring up to 6.2.

Some people were still trying to go through the rubble to look for survivors. At least 47 people are known to be dead, more than 500 injured and thousands of other effected. That toll could rise.

In about 80 percent of the homes the mud adobe homes in some rural areas have reportedly collapsed. Some road blocks and phone lines down are making the information to come slowly from the most effected areas -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Claudia Cisneros live from Lima. Thank you so much with the update -- Miles.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Peru's government has dispatched two planes with emergency supplies to the earthquake area but much more help is needed, of course. For more on the relief efforts we are joined now with -- by Ian Logan of the International Red Cross. He's on the line with us from the headquarters of that organization in Geneva.

Mr. Logan, can you hear me?

IAN LOGAN, INTERNATIONAL RED CROSS: Yes, I can.

O'BRIEN: Bring us up to date on efforts to get some relief to that area.

LOGAN: OK, trying not to repeat what we have -- what was said in your earlier report. We are concentrating on the likelihood that the casualties will increase particularly in terms of people that are homeless. We will be looking at blankets, shelter, psychological assistance -- very much duplicating what we have completed doing in El Salvador. There are a lot of similarities.

The temperature, of course, are much colder there. We are contacting our various organizations including the American Red Cross, British, Japanese -- a number of the others that work with who are ready to provide assistance from outside if it's necessary. And we have our own teams of International Red Cross and Peruvian Red Cross people who were coincidentally on the -- right in that area when it hit.

O'BRIEN: Mr. Logan, have you been able to get many first hand reports from your people on the ground in Peru?

LOGAN: We were doing quite well a bit earlier on -- around about 2:00 in the morning Geneva time here -- so about 12 hours ago. We will be able to make contact with the Red Cross in Arequipa and also with our own international delegates who is moving down towards there. Since then we've had difficulty making contact, whether that's just because it's the nighttime or because there's even more difficulty with communications, we're not sure.

We're trying to get people in there with cell phones, which will increase. So at the moment our own information is very much, as you've heard, 50-plus dead -- 500-plus but obvious the whole rural area in the middle still needs to be assessed and evaluated.

O'BRIEN: So you don't have a very good handle, then, on the scope yet? It's still a little premature?

LOGAN: No, but if you're simply looking at the fault lines and looking at where we know the Arequipa and Moquegua were both heavily hit, we have to work on the assumption that that area between them will be effected. And that will be difficult because it could be hit even harder than what we're talking about right now.

O'BRIEN: Historically this is a place that has been hard hit by seismic activity over the years. Can we presume that the buildings there are built to withstand this sort of thing?

LOGAN: Difficult so say. I think that it's fairly clear from the information that we're getting in particularly from Moquegua, they're still pretty much based on the -- on the adobe style of construction. You have a plus and minus -- they tend not to be quite as hazardous when it comes to casualties but also they're not as strong.

I think we have to work on, again, the same situation that we will have some better constructed buildings in the main center of Arequipa but the rural stuff will be very much the same as before. And there still needs a lot of work to be done on this whole question of using local materials in an improved manner to raise resistance.

O'BRIEN: And logistically, just give us an idea of the rough time frame when you think significant amounts of aid and assistance will be on the ground there in Peru. How long will it take?

LOGAN: Well, I think the first thing that we're all really waiting for is a very clear indication of what is the status of Arequipa airport -- can it take an aircraft? If so, of what size? Now thereafter we're looking at direct flights. We have our own logistics base in Panama. Are we're some five to six hours from flying stuff in. Obviously, speed is of the essence but we've also learned the hard way that speed with the wrong stuff can actually cause more problems.

So there has to be some type of equator balance between the speed and getting the right stuff that's most needed in.

O'BRIEN: Ian Logan is with the International Red Cross. He joined us on the line from Geneva. Thanks very much for being with us on what is no doubt a busy day there in Geneva.

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