After the crash can come another shock: no signal, no lights and no certainty about which road is open. Network failures turn a geological emergency into a human ordeal.
Update history
Updated August 11, 2026 at 12:22 p.m. Colombia time
Retrospective addition of the 6:30 a.m. slot, based on Semana’s 6:15 a.m. publication: national demand recovered to 99%, without complete restoration in Quibdó. Added the separate situations in Quibdó and Cali and the sixteen aqueducts reported without locations.
Why phones stop working
Simultaneous calls can overload a network even when antennas remain intact. Congestion combines with power cuts and physical damage. Backup batteries last only a few hours if power is not restored.
The electricity grid protects itself
Automatic systems isolate equipment to prevent fires and cascading failures. Crews must inspect lines, transformers and substations before reconnecting power, prioritising hospitals, water systems and emergency services.
Airports and roads under inspection
Flight suspensions and checks of bridges or slopes slow logistics but protect travellers and response teams. Treat a route as available only after official confirmation.
National recovery does not mean complete local restoration
In an article published at 6:15 a.m. on August 11, Semana attributed to XM an initial drop of about 18% in electricity demand across eleven departments, followed by recovery to 99% of pre-earthquake demand.
The percentage describes the National Interconnected System. In the same update, Dispac still reported a total outage in Quibdó and sixteen other municipalities in its service area, with inspections and a contingency plan underway and no confirmed deadline for full restoration.
Different conditions reported by different operators
Enel Colombia described infrastructure in Bogotá and Cundinamarca as stable, with isolated interruptions being addressed and inspections continuing. EPM reported no major damage to its generation, water, sanitation, gas and power transmission assets; EDEQ and CHEC reported no major operational anomalies at their Coffee Region plants.
These operator statements cannot be generalised to service conditions in every municipality.
Water and communications: Quibdó, Cali and the national report
RFI/AFP, published at 10:49 a.m. and updated at 11:20 a.m., reported that Quibdó had neither electricity nor communications and insufficient access to water, according to Doctors of the World. In Cali, EMCALI had activated preventive protocols at its plants, with no confirmed widespread water shutdown; a supply point was distributing water and other essentials.
At 11:55:33 a.m., the toll presented by the president added sixteen affected aqueducts nationwide, without identifying their locations or the degree of interruption.
Watch the footage on YouTube
These Shorts document damage and search operations in the affected cities.