Magnitude 5.5 Earthquake Hits Central Peru, Killing at Least 5 and Displacing Hundreds

A powerful earthquake struck Peru's central Andes region late Saturday, killing at least five people and forcing hundreds to flee their homes as dozens of adobe structures — including a church and a convent — collapsed or were left dangerously unstable. Authorities said Sunday that an unknown number of people were still missing.

The magnitude 5.5 quake hit at 9:20 p.m. local time near the town of Sicaya in the Junín region, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Peru's National Civil Defense Institute reported that more than 20 people were injured and at least 300 residents were displaced, with many seeking shelter with relatives or in temporary community spaces.

Search-and-rescue teams were still working through the rubble on Sunday to locate those unaccounted for after several buildings gave way. In the farming community of Chongo Bajo, images showed families wrapped in blankets huddled outside their ruined homes as neighbors dug through debris. Livestock could be seen trapped under collapsed walls.

The region's widespread reliance on traditional adobe construction — a mix of mud, straw and clay — likely contributed to the severity of the damage, officials said. Luis Vásquez, head of the local civil defense office, noted that the rustic building materials “contributed to the greater impact and damage.”

“My home has been destroyed,” said resident Hermenegilda Guamalato, who spoke to local radio while searching for shelter with her three children in the neighboring province of Huayucachi.

Peru sits along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” one of the most seismically active zones on Earth, where tectonic plate collisions frequently generate powerful earthquakes. The country has a long history of devastating temblors; in 2007, a magnitude 7.9 quake struck the coastal province of Pisco, killing nearly 600 people and leveling entire towns.

Saturday's earthquake, though moderate in magnitude, exposed the persistent vulnerability of rural Andean communities where traditional building methods remain common. Experts note that without stronger enforcement of building codes and retrofitting programs, even relatively small quakes can produce outsized destruction in these areas. The disaster is expected to renew calls for investment in earthquake-resistant infrastructure across Peru's highlands.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.