Colombia earthquake death toll tops 250 as rescuers race to find survivors

Rescue crews dug through mountains of shattered concrete in western Colombia on Tuesday, racing to find survivors after a 7.4-magnitude earthquake killed more than 200 people and left over 3,000 missing, with officials warning the toll could continue to rise as teams reached cut-off areas.

The earthquake, the most powerful to strike the South American country in decades, tore through Colombia's coffee-growing heartland early on Monday, reducing apartment blocks, homes, schools, and hospitals to rubble in cities including Cali, Pereira, and Manizales. By Tuesday, local authorities put the death toll around 224, though The Guardian reported at least 240 dead, with estimates from multiple outlets exceeding 250 as crews reached previously inaccessible neighborhoods.reuters+2

Race Against Time

In the hardest-hit cities, rescuers worked through the night with cranes, excavators, and their bare hands, cutting through twisted steel and passing buckets of debris. Jose Fernando Usma, head of search and rescue for the Quindio branch of the Colombian Red Cross, told Reuters: "We still have a big window of time. We have approximately 24 more hours to have hope of life."internazionale+1

In Cali, several top floors of a hospital dedicated partly to pediatric care collapsed, trapping patients and forcing 600 others to be treated on a rubble-strewn street. In Pereira, entire residential blocks were reduced to piles of concrete. Around 1,600 buildings were reported damaged or collapsed across more than 30 affected cities and towns.reuters+2

The quake's epicenter was in San José del Palmar in the rural Chocó region, one of Colombia's poorest areas accessible largely by boat or airplane, where communications remained down in eight municipalities.inkl+1

Emergency Response and International Aid

Colombia's newly inaugurated President Abelardo De La Espriella, who was sworn in just days before the disaster, declared a state of emergency and decreed a three-month economic relief measure for the affected Risaralda region. He deployed 1,000 security forces to Cali following reports of looting, and both Cali and Pereira implemented overnight curfews.inkl+1

The United States allocated $15.5 million for emergency shelter, food, and damage assessments, while the Inter-American Development Bank made $50 million immediately available for reconstruction. Pope Leo XIV expressed being "deeply saddened" by the disaster, with Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin offering prayers "for the eternal rest of the deceased."arabnews+2

A Nation on Edge

Civil aviation authorities closed six airports due to damage, while electricity, water, and phone service remained disrupted across several areas. Nearly 100 aftershocks were registered as of Tuesday morning, keeping residents on edge in a region still haunted by a deadly 1999 earthquake that killed more than 1,000 people.reuters+1

"It broke my heart going through the city center and seeing all these businesses destroyed," De La Espriella said from Pereira.newscord