In the town of Atuncoya in Buenavista, Puno, inhabitants do not remember a winter with frost as strong as this.
17 July 2016 – In Atuncoya and Cachipascana cold kills. Extreme cold in Puno. Temperatures reaching 15 degrees below zero.
- 13 children under five have died in the Puno region from April to date.
- 19 thousand hectares of crops have been ruined by hail and bitter cold.
- More than 18,000 animals have died.
Juana Díaz Quispe collects manure of sheep and alpacas and uses it in her tiny kitchen of stones and adobe to keep the fire alive. She has no wood or coal. Nor electricity and gas.
Juana and her husband Pedro Quispe Pellinco have seen 30 of their rams and ewes die in less than a month, . They have lost almost everything and are desperate.
In Puno, the extreme cold and snowfall has killed 13 children under 5 years and 18,234 animals. They cannot withstand temperatures at night dropping to 15 degrees below zero.
“Here in Buenavista, our plantations are dry for months by frost that kills potato, corn and quinoa. The weakest offspring die of cold, “says Juana, while leaning to collect more animal waste. You must keep alive the house fire.
Some houses have solar panels. Jesus Mamaní Calla, a resident of Buenavista, tired of spending evenings by candlelight acquired a solar panel 6 months ago. This is the only modern device in his home. Every morning the sun recharges, thus providing the energy to feed 4 lights in his home until 10 pm.
It was also reported that 19.724 hectares of crops have been lost in Puno cold.
Theodosia, Councillor of San Antonio says that regional authorities have abandoned the people at the worst time of the year when the roads are BLOCKED by snow.