Colombia's Deadliest Quake in Decades Kills 175
Rescue teams race against time as a 7.4-magnitude earthquake flattens buildings across western Colombia, with the toll expected to climb further
Synopsis
The Colombian Association of Capital Cities reported on Monday that at least 175 people were dead and hundreds injured after a 7.4-magnitude earthquake hit western Colombia. Editor's note: This article corrects the death toll that was reported in the initial brief (224), which has fluctuated during the rescue operations, to the latest verified number.
AdvertisementThe base of Colombia's largest quake in decades
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported a powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck western Colombia Monday morning with its epicentre near San José del Palmar, a community of 4,800 about 400km west of Bogotá. It was Colombia's biggest earthquake in this century, according to the country's Geological Service.
A Rapidly Rising Toll
The death toll has been constantly revised as rescue teams move to isolated areas. The Colombian Association of Capital Cities on Tuesday morning said the death toll had climbed to 165. The number has since increased, with an additional 10 deaths reported in the city of Cali, giving a total of 175 deaths in the main cities of the country, as of 5:30 am local time.
AdvertisementThe association reported 85 deaths in Cali, 55 in Pereira, nine in Quibdó and five in Manizales. In the national briefing, Colombia's newly inaugurated President, Abelardo De La Espriella said that the tremor had resulted in the injury of 700 people; and estimated damage of 5,000 homes.
Widespread destruction has been caused in several cities
The cities most affected are in the "red alert" (the highest threat level) phase for disaster, including Pereira, Cali, Quibdó, Manizales, and Armenia, according to Asocapitales.
Seven airports and hospitals, roads, transportation, aqueducts and energy and telecommunications in the worst affected areas have been suspended. A hospital in the city of Cali collapsed after the earthquake, due to the collapse of its pediatric and neonatal departments.
The story of a Community Leader's Account
Normal people came to the rescue amidst the ruins. Carmen Yasmin Garcia, 43, a resident of Cali who volunteers with the rescue teams, said that her group had extricated seven people from the collapsing building while four others were still trapped and a dog was still trapped: "A moment ago I heard scratching but now I can't hear anymore, I believe the dog is alive, the more people helping we will get these people out.
AdvertisementCommunity leader Luis Gregorio Moreno told AFP “We are all devastated... At this moment, there are reported deaths, dozens of wounded but what there are most of are missing people.
A Painful Echo of the Past
The destruction in Armenia, which is one of the nation's coffee-growing regions, has stirred up painful memories of a 6.1-magnitude earthquake that struck the area in 1999 killing nearly 1,200 people and leaving an estimated 250,000 without homes, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
International Response
The U.S. Department of State has announced it will send $15.5 million to help with emergency shelter, food and other earthquake response aid, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio says Washington is "closely monitoring" the situation.
Across Latin America, governments have issued assistance, including in El Salvador and Mexico; and a curfew has been declared in the affected areas, which are undergoing rescue operations for a second day.
