Colombia on Monday declared a state of emergency following a powerful earthquake that caused at least 111 deaths and flattened dozens of buildings, trapping more victims underneath.
Political Context
“Traffic is paralyzed and people don’t want to go back to their homes for fear of an aftershock. Choco’s governor warned of serious damage in the provincial capital Quibdo, where videos showed more buildings reduced to rubble. At least 20 buildings crumbled in Colombia’s third-largest city, Cali, trapping people beneath the debris, Mayor Alejandro Eder said.
“The national government is maintaining all its capacities deployed to protect lives, assist affected communities and deliver aid to every area that needs it,” President Abelardo de la Espriella stated from Bogota. “A great many buildings” in the city sustained damage, said administrative worker Jaime Zuluaga, 50. “At this moment there are reported deaths, dozens of wounded, but what there are most of are missing people,” he said. “The quake was very, very strong,” said content creator Valeria Polo, 29, in the capital, where only minimal damage was recorded. Six small airports in western Colombia suspended operations, the civil aeronautics agency said, and the soccer governing body postponed upcoming football matches. European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen said the EU was “ready to provide more support” to the South American country.
