Machu Picchu airlift rescues hundreds of tourists

A break in the weather allowed the government to send in helicopters, but about 800 tourists are still stranded.

Tourists' patience has been stretched, with prices for some goods soaring.

The Machu Picchu site, which attracts more than 400,000 visitors a year, will be closed for several weeks after the heaviest rainfall for 15 years.

Tourists were stranded in the town of Aguas Calientes, at the foot of the ruins, after rainfall severed road and rail links.

They have complained at the slow pace of the rescue effort.

The BBC's Dan Collyns in Cusco says the rescue is now hitting its stride and the tourists should be out by the weekend, although the misery will continue for the thousands of Peruvians who have lost their homes and farmland to the floods.

More than 2,500 tourists have been rescued since Monday, officials said.

The evacuation has been done by age, with the elderly and children taken first.