At least 15 dead in mudslide at hotel in Peru

LIMA, Peru (UPDATED) – A landslide crashed into a hotel during a wedding celebration in southeastern Peru, killing at least 15 people, authorities said Sunday, January 27.

“The mudslide broke through the walls of the hotel, crashing through,” the mayor of the city of Abancay, where the hotel is located, told RPP radio.

The mayor, Evaristo Ramos, said about 100 guests had been invited to the wedding party Saturday and “there are 15 dead and 34 injured.”

Firefighters, police and residents worked through the night to rescue people still trapped under rubble, mud and rocks.

Civil defense chief General Jorge Chavez said that the dead were 11 women and 4 men.

They did not include the bride and groom, Benedicta Palomino and Bladimir Marquez, who were in stable condition, local officials said.

Authorities said the Alhambra hotel was built very close to a hillside. A retaining wall collapsed, and the mudslide brought the hotel roof down on the partygoers below, they said.

People searching for missing relatives were urged to visit surrounding health centers to find and identify their loved ones. – Rappler.com