Colombia quake: Frantic search for survivors as over 2,700 reported missing
Magnitude 7.4 earthquake kills at least 132 people and causes widespread damage in western Colombia. Rescuers are searching through collapsed buildings in western Colombia for
Magnitude 7.4 earthquake kills at least 132 people and causes widespread damage in western Colombia. Rescuers are searching through collapsed buildings in western Colombia for survivors after the country’s strongest earthquake this century killed at least 132 people and caused widespread devastation, according to local media. Emergency teams in the worst affected cities, including Cali and Pereira, have been working through the night and into Tuesday, listening for signs of life and trying to reach people trapped beneath concrete and debris during the magnitude 7.4 earthquake. The Choco region west of Cali and Pereira has also been impacted, but the extent of the damage is still not clear. Authorities have warned that the death toll from Monday’s quake could rise as search teams reach more affected areas in a big challenge for newly elected far-right President Abelardo de la Espriella. Here is what you need to know What is the death toll and extent of the damage? Dozens of people were killed in Cali, located 280km (175 miles) southwest of the capital, Bogota. On Monday President De la Espriella said 35 people were killed in the city. Dozens of buildings were left leaning precariously or destroyed outright, forcing residents into the streets in the city of about 2.2 million people. Local authorities farther north in the Risaralda region, where Pereira is located, said the death toll included at least 40 people killed there. Authorities also confirmed nine people killed in the Choco region, two in the Caldas region and a 73-year-old in the Antioquia region. At least 87 people were initially reported injured, but de la Espriella later reported 700 injured in Valle del Cauca alone. More than 2,700 people had been reported missing on citizen-run websites by Monday night although that figure does not necessarily represent the number of people confirmed missing.
About 1,600 buildings have been damaged or destroyed, including the towers of a historic cathedral in the city of Manizales. Several of the top floors of one of Cali’s hospitals – some dedicated to paediatric care – collapsed upon themselves, leaving some patients trapped and forcing about 600 others to be tended to on a street strewn with rubble, hospital director Irne Torres Castro told Caracol television. What do we know about the latest rescue efforts? De la Espriella, who assumed power on Friday, said rescuing people trapped under rubble was the government’s first priority. About 1,000 members of the security forces would be deployed to Cali by dawn, he said on Monday evening after reports of looting. Cali and Pereira implemented curfews on Monday night. “Our intention is to cooperate in any way necessary. Here, there are no distinctions or ideological divisions when it comes to defending our people or showing solidarity,” the president told journalists. Search and rescue operations continued into Tuesday with soldiers, emergency workers, firefighters, volunteers and relatives digging through collapsed buildings. In Cali, volunteers formed human chains to remove concrete, bricks and other debris by hand. Rescuers repeatedly stopped to listen for signs of life from people trapped beneath the rubble. Two women and two children were rescued from a collapsed building, firefighters said, while other teams continued searching for survivors. In Pereira, rescue workers said they were in contact with a boy trapped beneath a bakery while cranes were being used to remove dangerous sections of damaged buildings. Authorities have also deployed engineers, rescue workers and search dogs to Choco, where the extent of the destruction remains unclear because the region is remote and difficult to access. De la Espriella said the government had mobilised the “entire military and police apparatus” for the response.
The BriefWire