Rescue efforts across western Colombia entered a second day on Tuesday as emergency crews dug through collapsed buildings with officials warning the death toll from the country's most powerful earthquake in decades could climb further. The 7.4-magnitude quake struck Colombia's coffee-growing region early Monday and killing at least 164 people with more than 2,700 reported missing as of Monday night.
The quake flattened buildings in Cali and Pereira and damaged a historic cathedral in Manizales. In Cali, home to 2.2 million people at least 85 died and several floors of a hospital collapsed also forcing hundreds of patients into the streets. Pereira reported 66 deaths with entire residential blocks destroyed. Choco province nearest the epicenter reported 13 deaths though the region's remoteness has limited damage assessments.
President Abelardo De La Espriella sworn in just days earlier and deployed 1,000 security personnel to Cali following reports of looting, with curfews imposed in both Cali and Pereira. He also traveled to Choco's capital, Quibdo pledging military support and rental subsidies for displaced residents.
Around 1,600 buildings were reported damaged or destroyed nationwide. The disaster follows two earthquakes that killed more than 6,300 people in neighboring Venezuela in June also heightening regional anxiety. The U.S. State Department pledged $15.5 million in emergency aid with other Latin American governments also offering support.
