Meteor crater leaves Peruvians sick
The meteor is thought to have hit Peru on Saturday
Wednesday, 19, Sep 2007 09:36
A Peruvian crater apparently caused by a meteor at the weekend has left people who went to visit it complaining of headaches and nausea.
Hundreds of villagers living in Carancas have reported the symptoms and scientists are now investigating the crash site.
It has been reported that fumes created by the impact are responsible for the locals' ill-health.
The object hit the Earth on Saturday night, leaving a crater 26 foot deep and 65 foot wide.
Pictures show a muddy pool of water forming inside the crater.
"We've examined about 100 people who got near to the meteorite crater who have vomiting and headaches because of gasses coming out of there," Jorge Lopez, health director in Puno, told the Reuters news agency.
"People are scared. We ourselves went near the crater and now we've got irritated throats and itching noses."
Renan Ramirez, an engineer from the Peruvian Nuclear Energy Institute, said scientists have found no radiation at the crash site and ruled out the crater being caused by a fallen satellite.
"It is a conventional meteorite that, when it struck, produced gases by fusing with elements of the terrain," he told the AFP news agency.