Following a devastating 7.4-magnitude earthquake that claimed at least 111 lives, Colombian emergency personnel and volunteers searched through debris on Monday using buckets and their bare hands to find survivors after Earthquake Hits Colombia.
Striking shortly after 7:30 a.m. (1230 GMT), the powerful tremor shook multiple communities across Colombia’s Pacific coast and scenic coffee region, sending panicked residents fleeing into the streets and damaging no fewer than 1,500 structures.
A law student in Quibdo Wilmer Cuesta told AFP that “People ran out naked, people jumped from the second floor of their homes”.
Just three days into his term, Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella declared a state of emergency and pledged a fully coordinated rescue response.
Volunteers quickly mobilized to search for survivors in California using pickaxes, basic tools, and their hands, with Andres Felipe Mejia joining one of the impromptu rescue crews.
Rescuers established human chains to clear bricks and mortar, regularly pausing in complete silence to listen for any signs of life from those trapped beneath the rubble.
Widespread devastation was evident in several areas, with fallen cables strewn across roads, walls and floors tilted at unnatural angles, and household items crushed between slabs of concrete.
The disaster struck less than two months after severe twin earthquakes in neighboring Venezuela left over 6,300 dead and displaced tens of thousands of residents.
By Monday, local authorities instituted a midnight curfew in Cali and placed hospital networks across five Colombian cities on high alert.
In addition, civil aviation officials confirmed that at least six regional airports suspended operations.
Details of the earthquake
In Colombia’s capital, Bogota, the earthquake forced crowds of residents into the streets in their pajamas.
Felt as far away as neighboring Ecuador and Panama, the quake struck at a depth of 110 kilometers (68 miles).
US Geological Survey geologists have also attributed the seismic activity to movement along a deep fault within the subducting Nazca tectonic plate.
Following the tremor, authorities postponed all scheduled professional football matches across the nation.
Expressions of support and offers of solidarity poured in from countries across the region and around the globe.
Meanwhile, some sources have described the disaster as Colombia’s largest earthquake in the last 7 years.
Backstory…
This comes only few weeks after powerful twin earthquakes killed 32 people and injured over 700 others.
Speaking after the massive shocks collapsed entire buildings and sent people running in panic, the Venezuelan interim president, Rodriguez confirmed the death toll.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported that two powerful earthquakes, measuring 7.2 and 7.5 in magnitude, struck the same region of Venezuela on Wednesday, collapsing buildings in the capital and shutting down the country’s main airport.
Read Also: Venezuela Earthquake Death Toll Hits 1,500, Dozens More Missing
