Peruvian authorities said on Friday that the death toll from devastating mudslides in the country’s southern and central regions had risen to 18, including three children.
According to data from Peru’s National Institute of Civil Defense, the landslides last Sunday also injured 27 people and left 20 people missing.
According to the institute, the latest fatality occurred early Friday in the central Andean region of Junin, where a rock and mudslide buried a vehicle, killing one person and injuring two others.
Rains were heaviest in the Arequipa region, where homes, roads, schools and a medical center were destroyed in Camana province.
Numerous artisanal mines are located in the area, and officials fear some people may have been trapped in makeshift tunnels.
The children who died ranged in age from one to 10 years old, officials said.