At least nine people have died and an undetermined amount of people have been injured after a 5.2-magnitude earthquake hit Peru's south Andean region of Areguipa Sunday evening, the country's Civil Defense Institute said Monday.

Six fatalities have been registered in the district of Yanque and another three in Achoma, both in the province of Caylloma, the authorities said.

However, the death toll could rise as damage was still unknown in remote villages in the nearby Caylloma districts of Coporaque, Ichupampa, Chivay and Maca, about 1,000 km from Lima. They were still inaccessible.

One of the fatalities has been confirmed as Vaun Ken Edan, a 67-year-old tourist from the United States, said the Governor of Arequipa, Yamila Osorio.

The U.S. citizen died in the Hotel Lodge Inn in the neighboring town of Yanque which suffered serious damage, according to the institute.

Peru's Geophysical Institute (IGP) said that the earthquake took place around 21:58 local time with a depth of eight kilometers, 10 kilometers to the southeast of the town of Chivay.

Peru's President, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, told local media that humanitarian aid has been sent to Arequipa to tend to the 60 injured and 129 people affected.

"We are transporting the necessary aid to Caylloma and its affected districts," said the president.

Peru's Minister of Defense, Mariano Gonzalez, said Monday morning that three helicopters had been sent to check out the region, located more than 3,500 meters above sea level.

In order to verify the damage and to see what aid was needed, rescue helicopters will also provide temporary housing, food, water and medical assistance as well as evacuating the injured and affected.

Roads connecting the nearby villages with Chivay have been blocked by landslides. Authorities said heavy equipment is also being sent to the area to remove the rubble on the roads.

According to preliminary figures, a total of 1,056 houses were affected, some completely destroyed and others with partial damage.

According to the IGP, between midnight and Monday morning, on average, there were 50 aftershocks, all lower than 4.5-magnitude.

A report from the central government said that the damage was being evaluated and a state of emergency will probably be declared.

Peru is a country with recurrent earthquakes and an earthquake that struck the province of Pisco, 237 km south of Lima, on Aug. 15, 2007, caused 596 deaths.

Source : XINHUA