Several other people remain sick in remote Achuar villages in Amazon region as authorities rush to Morona river basin to vaccinate people

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

At least 12 people in remote indigenous communities in the Peruvian Amazon have died from rabies in recent months and several more remain sick after catching the disease from bats, a local governor said on Wednesday.



Authorities were rushing to vaccinate people in native Achuar villages near the Morona river basin where the deaths have surged, said Fernando Meléndez, the governor of the Loreto region.

Three children were among the 12 dead, said Meléndez.

“The death of even one child is grave,” Meléndez said. “Today the people of Loreto are living a tragedy.”



Peru’s central government was preparing a state of emergency to free up funds for additional vaccines and fly them into affected communities, which are far from roads, said the deputy health minister, Percy Minaya.

Rabies deaths from bat bites are rare in Peru, where native Amazonian tribes tend to lack access to basic healthcare and emergencies can go unattended for days.