A new cold front in the southern Andes is expected to drive temperatures down to as low as -19º Celsius (4º F) over the next several days. The areas hardest hit are the altiplano and mountain areas above 4,000 meters in Puno, Tacna and Moquegua, according to the national weather bureau, Senamhi, but the highlands of Apurimac, Huancavelica, Arequipa and Ayacucho are also included in the alert. Temperatures have already been at -11ºC in many areas.
In June, the government declared a state of emergency in many of these areas, with additional funds for health and farming programs.
The Ministry of Health reported that between January and May this year, 414 old-age people and 72 children under the age of five had died of pneumonia, and the casualties were expected to rise in the full winter.
Through the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation the government also drew up a contingency plan to mitigate the death of livestock, which occurs every year in southern Peru from the cold temperatures. The program, working with Agro Rural, the plant health service SENASA and other government organizations, began providing veterinary kits early this year as well sheds and seeds for planting additional forage. According to the director of Agro Rural, Joo Chang, 7,244 veterinary kits were distributed to protect some 740,000 head of sheep and alpaca. The annual death rate was approximately 6,000 sheep and alpacas, but since the distribution of veterinary kits of vitamins and antibiotics, the rate has dropped considerably, Chang said.
