At least 6 dead after powerful earthquake hits Peru’s Andes Region

Neena Mae Rayos, Philippine Canadian Inquirer
July 20, 2026

(Photo Courtesy: Yershon Vilca | IG)

LIMA, PERU – Civil defense officials confirmed that at least six individuals lost their lives and 21 more sustained injuries following two separate earthquakes that struck a mountainous area of Peru on Saturday night.

The tremors, with magnitudes of 5.1 and 3.7 recorded by Peru’s National Seismological Center, hit the Chupaca province in the Junín region, approximately 300 km east of Lima, at depths of 24 km and 18 km respectively.

Luis Vásquez, head of Peru’s National Civil Defense Institute, reported that preliminary assessments indicate around 48 homes were destroyed and another 18 damaged, displacing roughly 300 residents who are now receiving tents.

Emergency crews and firefighters mobilized early Sunday to clear debris and search for potential trapped victims in the affected areas.

This event underscores the seismic risks faced by Peru, which sits along the Pacific Ring of Fire, a zone responsible for approximately 85% of the world’s earthquake activity.