CUSCO, Peru, Jan. 30 (UPI) -- The last of the travelers left stranded by flooding and mudslides in Peru have been ferried out, government officials say.
Peruvian Tourism Minister Martin Perez said Friday that with the 1,460 tourists evacuated from Aguas Calientes, the total number of people rescued this week topped 4,000, with 3,500 of them classified as tourists, CNN reported.
Perez said the evacuations were accomplished by 268 helicopter flights between Machu Picchu, site of an ancient Incan settlement in the Andes Mountains, and the city of Cusco.
The flash floods, triggered by days of heavy rains, closed roads and bridges and washed out rail lines as tourists from around the world were trapped in a small town near the Incan ruins.
CNN said seven people, including an Argentine tourist, were killed in the flooding.
