Strong Aftershocks Following Killer Peru Quake

(AP) – At least two strong aftershocks have rattled the region of Peru where officials say more than 500 people have died since Wednesday’s powerful earthquake.

Survivors of the 8.0 quake have been lining up under a beating sun in the central plaza of the city of Pisco to receive bottled water unloaded from trucks by soldiers.

The chief of the rescue operation there says 85 percent of downtown Pisco has been destroyed by the quake. The center of the city has been choked with traffic, including relief vehicles.

Friday’s aftershocks included a magnitude-5.9 quake.

President Alan Garcia has said it will take 10 days to have a “situation approaching normality.”

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