Heavy rains in Peru's southern Arequipa region this week triggered floods and landslides that left at least two people dead and caused widespread damage to homes, streets and vehicles, according to national media and local authorities.

The downpours that began on Thursday (February 19) inundated residential areas and turned roads into channels of mud, stranding vehicles and damaging infrastructure. Officials said the victims included a man struck by lightning and an elderly woman who died after a river overflowed.

Drone footage from Cayma district showed streets blanketed in sludge as a tractor worked to clear mud-blocked roads.

In Arequipa, piles of debris and mud surrounded vehicles that had been pushed together by the flow, while residents waded through flooded streets and pumped water from their homes.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

CAYMA, AREQUIPA, PERU (FEBRUARY 20, 2026) (PERU MINISTRY OF HOUSING - Access All) (MUTE)

1. VARIOUS DRONE SHOTS OF STREETS COVERED IN MUD AND TRACTOR CLEARING STREETS BLOCKED BY MUD

AREQUIPA, PERU (FEBRUARY 20, 2026) (RADIO YARAVI AREQUIPA - No use Peru / Must on screen courtesy Radio Yaravi Arequipa)

2. VEHICLES PILED UP AND COVERED IN MUD / DEBRIS AND STREETS COVERED IN MUD

3. DAMAGED VEHICLES, DEBRIS / STREETS COVERED IN MUD AND VEHICLES PILED UP

4. VARIOUS OF MOUNDS OF MUD

5. VARIOUS OF DAMAGED VEHICLES

6. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) UNIDENTIFIED AREQUIPA RESIDENT, SAYING:

"I have been left homeless, I have nothing, everything is broken, all my display cases, my counter, everything is broken."

7. FALLEN DISPLAY CASE AND FLOODED GROCERY STORE

8. FLOODED STREET

9. VARIOUS OF VEHICLES STRANDED IN MUD

10. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) UNIDENTIFIED AREQUIPA RESIDENT, SAYING:

"The entire engine, the whole engine is filled with dirt. I've been removing it little by little. I don't know if the entire engine is damaged, I might have to buy another engine. I hope it's not ruined."

AREQUIPA, PERU (FEBRUARY 19, 2026) (REUTERS - Access All) (NIGHT SHOTS)

11. FLOODED STREET

12. PEOPLE REMOVING WATER FROM THEIR HOMES

13. VEHICLE STRANDED IN MUD PEOPLE AROUND TRYING TO REMOVE IT

14. PEOPLE REMOVING WATER FROM THEIR HOMES

15. PEOPLE TRYING TO REMOVE VEHICLE FROM MUD