Search-and-rescue teams in western Colombia continued operations into a fourth day following a magnitude 7.4 earthquake on Monday that has killed at least 265 people, injured more than 3,500, and left close to 500 unaccounted for, authorities said.
Colombian rescuers search for survivors four days after magnitude 7.4 earthquake kills 265
Search-and-rescue teams in western Colombia continued operations into a fourth day following a magnitude 7.4 earthquake on Monday that has killed at least 265 people, injured more than 3,500, and left close to 500 unaccounted for, authorities said.
The earthquake is described as the strongest to strike Colombia this century. More than 9,550 homes have been destroyed, and thousands of people are sleeping outdoors in makeshift shelters.
Pereira, located in Colombia's coffee region, recorded 83 deaths, while Cali, the country's third-largest city, recorded 74, according to local authorities. Rescue crews in both cities have been working through unstable rubble using cranes, hand tools, vibration sensors, and sniffer dogs, periodically ordering silence to listen for voices.
In Pereira, teams are concentrating efforts on a collapsed bakery where they believe street vendor Pablo Loaiza may still be alive. Specialist equipment has detected intermittent signs of life beneath the concrete. Outside the site, Loaiza's niece, 16-year-old Sara Loaiza, is among relatives keeping vigil. 'My heart is about to burst out of my chest,' she said.
By Wednesday, rescue crews were approaching the 72-hour mark since the quake struck — the period during which survivors are considered most likely to be found alive beneath collapsed buildings. Officials have described the search operation as having entered its 'final phase.'
President Abelardo de la Espriella declared an 'economic emergency' and three days of national mourning. Volunteers have organized food, water, and blood donation drives for affected communities, including a supply collection drive at the Nemesio Camacho 'El Campin' stadium in Bogota. A Mexican rescue team is among international responders assisting at the scene in Cali.
- The source does not state the specific regions or municipalities where the remaining nearly 500 missing persons were last located.
- The source does not state the full scope or terms of the declared 'economic emergency.'
- The source does not state how many rescue personnel, domestic or international, are participating in the operation.
- The source does not state whether any survivors were pulled from rubble after the 72-hour mark had passed.
- The source does not state the depth, cause, or epicenter location of the earthquake beyond the magnitude figure.
- The source text supplied appears truncated; some material may be missing.
Read the original at Al Jazeera English