Twenty-four hours after the violent earthquake struck western Colombia, rescuers are still searching rubble, authorities are consolidating reports from several cities and many families are waiting for news.
The situation at a glance
The magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck at 7:34 a.m. on August 10. Its epicentre was near San José del Palmar in Chocó, at a reported depth of around 100 kilometres. Search and rescue operations resumed early on August 11 in several cities and towns across western Colombia.
The data remains fragmented: national and local authorities publish at different times and do not always cover the same areas. None of the tolls below should be presented as final or added to another.
Four successive updates, four reporting scopes
The national government remained on an earlier toll of at least 111 deaths. A later Asocapitales update relayed by EFE reported 169 deaths and 668 injuries, including 165 deaths in capital cities.
The Associated Press then aggregated statements from mayors and governors in Cali, Pereira, Chocó and Manizales: at least 179 deaths in those four areas. A more recent aggregate from local authorities, relayed by Reuters and published by EL PAÍS on August 11, brought the provisional total to 224 deaths, without national consolidation.
On the morning of August 11, Cali’s unified command post reported 95 deaths, 949 injuries, 239 people reported trapped and 86 people rescued in the city. This local toll documents the situation in Cali and must not be added to a national total. AP also referred to more than 3,000 reports of people who could not be reached; this is not an official national list of missing persons.
Access hampers rescue operations
AP reported around 1,600 buildings damaged or collapsed across the region. In Cali, the local update listed 45 structures that had totally or partially collapsed and 93 buildings with preliminary damage. In El Cairo, local authorities estimated that 80% of the town was damaged.
Much of Chocó can only be reached by boat, through the jungle or by air, leaving the full extent of the damage unclear. Pereira banned private vehicles to clear routes for ambulances, police and rescuers; Cali and Pereira had imposed curfews on the evening of August 10.
Aftershocks placed in their proper chronology
The Colombian Geological Service had counted 47 aftershocks by 6:30 p.m. Colombia time on August 10. The strongest reached magnitude 4.8. This is a retrospective addition: it belongs to August 10, not to the time it was discovered on August 11. Further aftershocks remain probable.
What remains unknown
There is no consolidated national damage assessment or final, verified list of missing people yet. Damage across rural Chocó remains especially uncertain. Establishing why individual buildings collapsed will require independent engineering assessments and access to plans, soil studies and renovation records.
Watch the footage on YouTube
These Shorts document damage and search operations in the affected cities.