A devastating 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck Colombia on Monday morning, causing widespread damage and forcing rescue teams to race against time to find people trapped under the rubble.
According to CNN’s tally, at least 254 people have been killed. Nearly 2,600 others have been injured and around 200 are reported missing, while the country’s Geological Survey has recorded more than 70 aftershocks.
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However, several successful operations have kept hope alive. In Cali, a woman was rescued almost 30 hours after the earthquake, while a baby was also pulled alive from the rubble.
One of the worst-affected areas is Cali, where Efrain Gallego is waiting for news about his 80-year-old brother. The elderly man and his wife were trapped when the Torres del Limonar building collapsed.
Although the hours are passing, Gallego continues to believe that his brother can be pulled out alive.
“You feel anxious. Every time there is an announcement that someone is alive, our hope of finding him is renewed,” he said emotionally, his voice trembling as he spoke about his brother.
The Torres del Limonar building, located in the Capri neighborhood, has become one of the defining images of the disaster in Cali. It is Colombia’s third-most populous city and has more than two million residents.
Until Monday, a four-story building containing dozens of apartments stood at the site. After the earthquake, all that remains is a huge pile of concrete, amid which mattresses, furniture and residents’ personal belongings can be seen.
Authorities still do not know exactly how many people were inside the building when it collapsed.
Volunteers and emergency team members are working around the clock on top of the rubble. Whenever they manage to penetrate deeper and suspect they may be close to a survivor, they call for complete silence.
“Silence! We are firefighters. If you can hear us, shout or make some noise,” rescue workers can be heard calling out.
At those moments, relatives gathered near the site regain hope, but they then face agonizing seconds of waiting as they try to hear whether any response is coming from beneath the rubble.
More than 100 people had gathered around Torres del Limonar awaiting information. Cali Mayor Alejandro Ender said that, as of Monday evening, an estimated 25 people were trapped in the remains of the building.
A member of the rescue teams said around 10 people had been pulled out from the site. Meanwhile, local media reported at least six survivors, including a baby just a few months old.
“What I can tell you is that at least two people have been found alive at this time. Tunnels are being opened to get them out. One of them needs to have their leg freed,” rescuer James Velasco said.
Amid the scenes of devastation, another moment of hope came when a woman was pulled alive from the remains of a building in Cali nearly 30 hours after the earthquake struck.
A dramatic video also documented the moment a baby was pulled alive from the rubble of an apartment building in the city.
Searches are continuing without pause, as teams are aware that the chances of finding people alive diminish with every passing hour.
The situation in Cali remains extremely serious. According to Mayor Alejandro Ender, at least 95 people have died in the city.
On Tuesday, Ender reported that 239 people remained trapped, 949 had been injured and 45 buildings had partially or completely collapsed.
More than 50 damaged buildings have been reported across the city.
Collapses also occurred on the upper floors of a hospital, some of which were used by pediatric units. As a result, several patients were trapped.
In the Calima neighborhood, four children were killed when part of the Gimnasio Calima school collapsed.
Other children suffered serious injuries. District Mayor Antonio Cadavid said that a total of 30 of them were taken to medical centers.
Because of the risk of looting, authorities imposed a curfew from 8 p.m. local time until 6 a.m. Wednesday.
Among the victims is Mateo Valencia, the six-year-old son of Jairson Leonel Valencia, mayor of the coastal city of Bahia Solano.
The six-year-old died when his home collapsed.
“Mateo’s death fills our institution and the entire municipality of Bahia Solano with profound sorrow,” the local government said.
On Monday evening, dozens of residents attended a candlelight vigil, where they said farewell to Mateo and prayed for his family.
At least 13 other people have been killed in the Choco region, where the child lived.
Choco Governor Nubia Carolina Córdoba-Kuri expressed her support, saying: “We stand with the mayor and his entire family at this painful time.”
Former Foreign Minister and former Choco Governor Luis Gilberto Murillo also responded with a message of solidarity. He wished the family and the local community “strength, comfort and peace to face this irreparable loss.”
One day after the disaster, thousands of people must contend not only with the loss of relatives and property, but also with the continuing fear of aftershocks.
Many residents of Cali and Pereira spent the night between Monday and Tuesday outdoors. Some had lost their homes, while others feared that buildings could collapse in further tremors.
Since the 7.4-magnitude earthquake, more than 70 aftershocks have been recorded across Colombia. Early Tuesday, two tremors with a magnitude of 3.6 were recorded, one in San José del Palmar and the other in Santander.
The main earthquake struck at 07:34 local time on Monday, or 12:34 GMT. The tremors were felt across a wide area and hundreds of kilometers away in western Colombia.
In Pereira, the fire department reported 101 deaths. Hundreds of volunteers and rescuers continued working amid the rubble.
To keep operations running without interruption, a crane and a fuel tanker were sent to the collapsed area at one point.
Authorities also declared a car-free day to facilitate search and rescue operations, while residents were asked to comply with the measure.
A resident of the Parque Industrial neighborhood near Pereira airport described the situation in the first hours after the earthquake.
“It is impossible to move around the city center. At least one building has collapsed in Bolivar Square. There are also structures where buses and trucks are trapped, and people fear they could collapse as well,” he said.
The resident described the overall situation by saying: “We are all in shock. It was truly terrible.”
Severe infrastructure damage was also recorded in La Italia, an area located at the epicenter of the powerful earthquake. Residents there are also facing water and electricity shortages.
Local community leader Jason Guevara said that even a day after the tremors, the area continued to face major structural problems and disruptions to basic services.
In Manizales, Mayor Jorge Eduardo Rojas reported five deaths and 60 buildings that had completely or partially collapsed.
Municipal institutions have received thousands of requests from residents for inspections of damaged homes. It is estimated that completing this process will take at least one month.
Rojas urged residents not to share chain messages or social media posts from unknown sources. He warned that such material could contain “false or unverified information” and further increase anxiety.
The earthquake also caused a fire inside a prison in Buenaventura, near Cali in western Colombia.
According to Valle del Cauca Governor Dilian Francisca Toro, at least four people were killed and two others were taken to hospital for treatment.
Colombian President Abelardo de la Esperanza has declared a nationwide state of emergency.
During a statement from Pereira on Tuesday, one of the hardest-hit cities, he announced that nearly 2,600 people had been injured and around 200 were still considered missing.
More than 1,100 homes have been completely destroyed, while over 8,000 others have been damaged.
During a tour of cities in the coffee-growing region, the president also announced financial support for people affected by the disaster.
The death toll remains unclear because official and local figures do not match. The official toll remained at 181, while a combined count by local officials put the total at more than 240.
In CNN’s tally, the number of confirmed deaths has reached at least 254. Meanwhile, unofficial figures based on an online platform where residents report missing relatives indicate that around 4,000 people may still be missing.
Following the disaster, the international community has begun mobilizing to assist Colombia.
A spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that he “expresses his solidarity with the people and government of Colombia.” The United Nations is also working to support the government’s disaster response.
Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Álvarez announced that 164 Spanish nationals remain missing. So far, there have been no reports of Spanish citizens among the dead or injured.
The Trump administration, which supported Abelardo de la Esperanza during the presidential election he won earlier this year, has pledged $15.5 million in financial aid to Colombia.
Ecuador, Brazil, El Salvador and Venezuela have also offered assistance to the earthquake-stricken country.
