Camino Inca

Severe rainfall in Peru recently has caused landslides along the railway line from Cuzco to Machu Picchu, making it impossible for trains to reach or depart Aguas Calientes, the access point for Machu Picchu, resulting in many tourists being stranded at the legendary site of the Incas.

The heavy rains caused severe damage to the 122-kilometer long railway infrastructure between Cuzco, Ollantaytambo and Aguas Calientes. While work to restore rail service into Machu Picchu has commenced and rains have in part subsided, it is a rainy season in Peru and the inclement weather will continue to adversely affect the repairs.

Tours operators have assisted in the evacuation operations of their stranded clients as well as other travelers caught buy the rains in the area. The Cuzco local government, Peruvian national government, the US embassy and the Peru Rail have all provided helicopters to evacuate the tourists from Machu Picchu to Ollantaytambo, from where they can be safely then transferred by road to Cuzco.

Although more than ten helicopters have been involved in the evacuations, weather conditions have slowed down the evacuations. Full evacuation of all travelers from Machu Picchu is expected to be completed this weekend. Though stranded at the Machu Picchu ruins the tourists stay at local lodges and medical services have been provided by the Peruvian army.

To restore the railway line may take at least another week although the engineers of the Orient Express owned company that leases and operates the railway infrastructure between Cuzco, Ollantaytambo and Machu Picchu have inspected the tracks and announced that complete reconstruction works will take minimum three to eight weeks.

The sector from Ollantaytambo to Piscacucho, fully accessible by road from Ollantaytambo, is expected to last the longest, with service to be restored no earlier than early April. Piscacucho is only a short distance from Ollantaytambo in direction of Machu Picchu and serves as the trail head of the four-day Inca Trail.