Death of local mayor causes panic in Choropampa, 8 years after mercury spill

The death of the mayor of Choropampa, Vicente Zarate Minchán, has triggered widespread panic in the town in the Cajamarca highlands, eight years after the June 2, 2000 mercury spill that contaminated Choropampa and two neighboring towns. Zarate, 34, died of Guillain-Barré syndrome, a disorder in which the body’s immune system attacks part of the [...]