Lima
Capital and largest city of Peru.
Lima is a new front in Peru's measles outbreak: by 30 September 2026 east Lima had 29 confirmed cases among 199 suspected, and the city hosts October's Señor de los Milagros processions, which PAHO flags as a transmission risk.
Last refreshed: 4 October 2026
Timeline for Lima
Mentioned in: Peru overtakes Guatemala on new measles
Pandemics and BiosecurityBackground
Lima is the capital and largest city of Peru. In 2026 it became a front in the country's measles outbreak. By 30 September the health ministry had confirmed 29 cases among 199 suspected in east Lima, most reported from Ate, San Juan de Lurigancho, El Agustino and Santa Anita, and had begun house-to-house vaccination there, according to EFE. Peru had 2,357 confirmed cases nationally.
The city has been under emergency rules since May, when Supreme Decree 008-2026-SA declared a 90-day measles health emergency covering Metropolitan Lima, Callao and 12 departments, citing gaps in vaccination. Most of Peru's cases sit in the highland regions of Puno and Arequipa, where PAHO is supporting the response.
PAHO's warning for the coming months centres on Lima's crowds. The Señor de los Milagros processions each October draw very large numbers from across the country, and Pope Leo XIV is due to visit Peru in November 2026. PAHO names both as transmission risks. In the fortnight to 12 September Peru added 190 cases, more than Guatemala's 176.
Lima's crowds raise the measles risk
PAHO's count to 19 September 2026 put measles in the Americas at 53,957 cases and 68 deaths, and Peru's tally rose by 190 in the two weeks to 12 September, outpacing Guatemala's 176. Lima is where that rise meets the country's largest crowds: PAHO named October's Señor de los Milagros processions in the capital as a transmission risk.
Pope Leo XIV's visit to Peru in November 2026 is the second gathering PAHO flagged. East Lima had 29 confirmed cases among 199 suspected by 30 September, with Ate and San Juan de Lurigancho among the districts reporting, and Peru's health ministry had begun house-to-house vaccination there.