At least 12 people have been killed and 20 others injured in a landslide in the Amazon region of Peru, officials said on Monday.
Local health officials said two people were still missing and national police and navy units were dispatched by helicopters to the area to assist in the rescue operation.
The landslide occurred at 4:20 a.m. local time (10:20 CET) in the river port of Iparia in the Amazon jungle region of Ucayali, 415 kilometers (258 miles) from the capital Lima, affecting two boats that were headed to other cities in the region.
Three children are also included in the dead.
More than half of Peru is covered with dense forest, including vast expanses of the Amazon basin.
Rescuers race to find survivors amid tough weather conditions
Navy Captain Jonathan Novoa told the AFP news agency that rescue efforts were complicated by the strong currents and whirlpools in the river.
“We are in flood season,” he said, adding that conditions at the time of the landslide were difficult due to changing weather and fog.
Two boats sank as a result of the collision, the number of people on the boats has not yet been assured.
According to local reports, one of the boats was traveling from a nearby indigenous community and had stopped in Iparia so that the passengers could disembark along with teachers and doctors.
Edited by: Roshni Majumdar