Police in the Peruvian city of Trujillo came up with a novel way to allow Peruvians to continue a religious tradition under coronavirus lockdown.

The patron saint of the Peruvian city of Trujillo took the sky as the country was confined under a coronavirus lockdown. A statue of the Virgin of Socorro, or the Virgin of Perpetual Help, was paraded over the city in a police helicopter. 

Every five years, the statue is paraded through Trujillo to offer blessings to city residents but plans were changed due to the pandemic. 

The lockdown bans public gatherings so this year the statue placed by the helicopter's window for the city tour. Priests joined her on the flight and prayed for an end to the COVID-19 pandemic and for frontline workers.

Miguel Cabrejos Vidarte, Archbishop of Trujillo said, “We are grateful for the devotion to the Most Holy Virgin of Our Lady of Socorro, protector of the city of Trujillo.” He added, “We have toured the entire city of Trujillo and its surroundings - an hour and a half of travel.” 

Believers say the Virgin of Perpetual Help made her first appearance in 1537. Catholics believe she performed a miracle to end an outbreak of the bubonic plague in Trujillo in 1674.