Unusually large waves along Peru’s coast have claimed at least one life and forced some 85 ports to close, the National Institute of Civil Defense (Indeci) said Wednesday.
The waves that have battered the coastline for two days range from “light to strong intensity,” and ports along Peru’s entire coast are to remain closed until Jan. 16 as a preventive measure, said Indeci, recommending the suspension of “port and fishing activities,” and the return of vessels to harbor.
The victim, Santos Carrasco Clavijo, 70, drowned on Tuesday after the waves dragged him out to sea while fishing in Peru’s northwest Piura region, local media said Wednesday.
His son, who was with him in the small boat that capsized due to the high waves, managed to bring his father to shore, but efforts to revive him failed, making him the first fatality of the unusual phenomenon.
Fishermen in Piura reported “personal and material damage,” including destroyed boats and damaged docks.
Videos on social media showed two-meter-high waves crashing onto the shore and frightening locals, especially along the stretch from the northern region to Peru’s capital Lima.
