Rescue teams in western Colombia pressed on with search operations on Tuesday as the death toll from Monday’s magnitude 7.4 earthquake rose to 234, with authorities warning the number could still climb as crews reach harder-hit areas.
The quake, the strongest to hit the country in two decades, struck at 7:34 a.m. local time near the town of San Jose Del Palmar in the Choco region, according to the United States Geological Survey. It flattened homes and businesses across Cali, Pereira, Manizales and Choco, leaving thousands more injured and displaced.
Cali, Colombia’s third-largest city, and Pereira, in the heart of the coffee-growing region, have reported the heaviest losses, with dozens of buildings collapsed in each. In Cali alone, officials said dozens of large structures came down, including a hospital where patients had to be pulled from the rubble of its pediatrics ward.
More than 2,700 people remained unaccounted for as of Tuesday, and rescuers said the window to find survivors alive was narrowing. Dogs, drones and cranes have been deployed to search collapsed apartment blocks, and soldiers, emergency workers and volunteer crews have formed human chains to clear debris by hand.
Newly inaugurated President Abelardo de la Espriella, who took office just days before the disaster, declared a state of national emergency and announced a three-month economic relief package for the affected coffee-growing region of Risaralda. He toured the damage in Pereira and described the destruction to local businesses as devastating.
International aid pledges have poured in from the United States, Europe, the Middle East and neighboring South American nations as Colombia mounts its largest disaster response in decades. Aid groups have cautioned that the quake struck a region already grappling with existing humanitarian pressures.
Colombia’s Geological Service has recorded more than 20 aftershocks since Monday, and officials have warned residents to brace for further tremors as search and recovery operations continue. Colombia Earthquake Death Toll Climbs to 234 as Search Operations Continue