Rabies spread by bats kills 12 in Peruvian Amazon

LIMA (Reuters) - At least 12 people in remote indigenous communities in the Peruvian Amazon have died from rabies in recent months and several more remain sick after catching the disease from bats, a local governor said Wednesday. Authorities were rushing to vaccinate people in native Achuar villages near the Morona River basin where the deaths have surged, said Fernando Melendez, the governor of the region Loreto. Some three children were among the 12 dead, said Melendez. "The death of even one child is grave," Melendez said. "Today the people of Loreto are living a tragedy." Peru's central government was preparing a state of emergency to free up funds for additional vaccines and fly them into affected communities, which are far from roads, said Deputy Health Minister Percy Minaya. Rabies deaths from bat bites are rare in Peru, where native Amazonian tribes tend to lack access to basic health care and emergencies can go unattended for days. (Reporting By Mitra Taj; Editing by David Gregorio)