7.4M earthquake hits western Colombia: at least 110 killed, dozens of buildings collapsed

An M7.4 earthquake hit western Colombia on Monday, killing at least 110 people and injuring hundreds.

The earthquake struck around 7:30 and had its epicenter in San Jose del Palmar, a municipality in the Choco province.

In the hour that followed, locals began reporting collapsed buildings in the cities of Cali, Pereira and Manizales, where a tower of the cathedral and a dozen other buildings fully or partially collapsed, according to Mayor Jorge Eduardo Rojas.

In a first report on fatalities, Risaralda Governor Juan Diego Patiño said that at least 40 people were killed in the capital Perira. Another three would have been killed in Manizales.

In Cali, an unknown number of people would be trapped under the rubble of multiple buildings. At least 27 people would be killed in the Valle del Cauca province.

Large parts of the roof of the Pereira airport came down, according to video shared on social media.

Flights to Pereira, Manizales, Quibdo, Armenia, Cartago and Buenaventura were suspended while airport authorities check for damages to infrastructure

In Quibdo, the capital of Choco, at least four people were killed and another 69 were injured, Governor Nubia Carolina Cordoba said in her second report.

The earthquake was also felt strongly in the capital Bogota and in Medellin where no injuries were reported.

In an initial response, President Abelardo de la Espriella said on social media platform X that he had “personally taken charge of the emergency response in San José del Palmar.”

“I will also be in Pereira in person to stand with those affected and monitor the government’s response,” said De la Espriella, who took office on Friday and has yet to appoint his director of disaster response agency UNGRD.

The president later reported that he was on his way to Bogota to lead rescue efforts from the UNGRD’s main office.

I have established a Unified Command Post at the UNGRD, from where I will personally lead the efforts to assist the communities in Chocó, the Coffee Region, and all affected areas.

President Abelardo de la Espriella

According to the Colombian Geological Service, the earthquake was the strongest in Colombia of the past decade.

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