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Colombia Earthquake: 254 Dead, Miraculous Rescues Keep Hope Alive

Rescue teams in Colombia are in a desperate race against time, searching for survivors beneath tons of rubble following the catastrophic 7.4-magnitude earthquake that struck the country on Monday morning. At least 254 people have…

Colombia Earthquake: 254 Dead, Miraculous Rescues Keep Hope Alive
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Rescue teams in Colombia are in a desperate race against time, searching for survivors beneath tons of rubble following the catastrophic 7.4-magnitude earthquake that struck the country on Monday morning. At least 254 people have been killed, according to a CNN tally, nearly 2,600 have been injured, and approximately 200 remain missing, while more than 70 aftershocks have been recorded by the country’s Geological Survey. Amid the devastation, the rescue of a woman nearly 30 hours after the quake and the recovery of a baby from the ruins in Cali are keeping hope alive.

In Cali, one of the hardest-hit cities, Efraín Gallego is anxiously waiting for news about his 80-year-old brother, who was trapped along with his wife when the Torres del Limonar building collapsed.

Despite the passing hours, he refuses to give up faith that his brother might be found alive. “You feel anguish. Every time there’s word that someone is alive, hope is reborn that we’ll find him,” he says, his voice breaking as he speaks about his brother.



Torres del Limonar, in the Capri neighborhood, has become one of the defining symbols of the disaster in Cali, Colombia’s third-largest city with more than two million residents.

Where a four-story apartment complex with dozens of units once stood, there is now a massive mountain of concrete, from which mattresses, furniture, and personal belongings of the residents protrude.

The exact number of people who were inside the building when it collapsed remains unknown.


“Silence! We are firefighters — if you can hear us, shout”

Rescuers and volunteers are working non-stop on the rubble. “Silence! We are firefighters. If you can hear us, shout or make any noise,” rescue teams can be heard calling out.



The process is repeated each time teams manage to dig deeper into the ruins and believe they may be close to a survivor.

These are the moments when relatives regain their hope — followed by agonizing seconds of silence, waiting for a response from beneath the wreckage.

More than 100 people had gathered around Torres del Limonar waiting for news. According to Cali’s mayor, Alejandro Eder, by Monday evening it was estimated that approximately 25 people remained trapped in the ruins of that particular building.



About ten people had already been rescued from the site, according to a rescuer, while local media reported at least six survivors, including an infant just a few months old.

“What I can tell you is that right now at least two people have been found alive. Tunnels are being dug to extract them. One needs to be freed from a leg that is trapped,” said rescuer James Velasco.

Woman rescued nearly 30 hours after the earthquake

Amid the scenes of destruction, there were also moments that lifted the spirits of rescue teams. In Cali, a woman was pulled alive from the ruins of a building nearly 30 hours after the earthquake.



Dramatic video also captured the moment a baby was pulled alive from the rubble of an apartment building in the city.



Operations continue without interruption, as rescuers know that with every passing hour, the chances of finding more survivors grow slimmer.


95 dead and hundreds trapped in Cali

The situation in Cali remains extremely dire. According to Mayor Alejandro Eder, at least 95 people have lost their lives in the city.

On Tuesday, the mayor reported that 239 people remained trapped, 949 had been injured, and 45 buildings had partially or completely collapsed.

In total, more than 50 buildings have been reported as damaged across the city.



Sections of upper floors of a hospital — some of which housed pediatric units — collapsed, leaving patients trapped. In the Calima neighborhood, four children died when part of the Gimnasio Calima school collapsed.

Other children were seriously injured, and a total of 30 were transferred to medical facilities, according to local mayor Antonio Cadavid. To also address the risk of looting, a curfew was imposed from 8:00 p.m. local time until 6:00 a.m. on Wednesday.

Six-year-old son of a mayor among the victims

Among the victims is six-year-old Mateo Valencia, the son of Jairson Leonel Valencia, mayor of the coastal town of Bahía Solano.

The child was killed when his home collapsed.

“The death of Mateo fills our institution and the entire municipality of Bahía Solano with profound grief,” the local authorities stated.



Dozens of people gathered on Monday evening for a candlelight vigil to bid farewell to the six-year-old and pray for his family.

In the Chocó region, where the child lived, at least 13 other people have been killed.

“We stand wholeheartedly beside the mayor and his entire family in this painful moment,” said Chocó governor Nubia Carolina Córdoba-Curi.

Former Foreign Minister and former governor of Chocó, Luis Gilberto Murillo, also expressed his condolences, wishing the family and local community “strength, comfort, and peace to face this irreparable loss.”

Colombia: Residents of Cali and Pereira spend the entire night in the streets

The day after finds thousands of people facing not only the loss of loved ones and property, but also the fear of aftershocks.

In Cali and Pereira, many residents spent the night from Monday to Tuesday outdoors — either because their homes had been destroyed or because they feared new collapses.

More than 70 aftershocks have been recorded across the country following the 7.4-magnitude earthquake. Two tremors of magnitude 3.6 struck early Tuesday, one in San José del Palmar and the second in Santander.

The main earthquake struck at 7:34 a.m. local time on Monday (12:34 GMT) and was felt across a vast area spanning hundreds of kilometers in western Colombia.

In Pereira, where the Fire Department reports 101 people have lost their lives, hundreds of rescuers and volunteers are working through the rubble.

At one of the search sites, a crane and a fuel tanker were brought alongside the wreckage to ensure operations could continue without interruption.

Authorities declared a car-free day to facilitate search and rescue operations, urging citizens to comply with the measure.

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