Minn. college students evacuated from Machu Picchu

A group of Gustavus Adolphus College students and faculty who have been stranded near Machu Picchu in Peru have been airlifted to a nearby city.

College officials say Thursday night that the 21 students and two faculty members have been taken by helicopter to nearby Cusco.

The group is expected to spend Thursday night in a hotel while Gustavus officials arrange a flight back to the United States.

On Sunday, mudslides cut the railway line that was the only route to the area atop an Andean mountain ridge. The Gustavus group was among more than 2,000 travelers who were trapped for days.

The Gustavus group is on a study abroad course examining social issues in the country.

---

On the Net: Gustavus Adolphus College: http://gustavus.edu

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)