CALI, Colombia — Emergency workers in western Colombia used excavators and their bare hands Tuesday to dig through collapsed buildings and flattened homes, a day after a magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck the country’s coffee-growing region, killing at least 164 people.
Officials warned the death toll from the strongest earthquake to strike the South American country in decades is expected to rise as search teams reach buried structures.
The destruction was concentrated in urban centers, including Cali and Pereira, where multi-story structures were reduced to concrete and twisted steel.
In Cali, a city of 2.2 million where at least 85 deaths were confirmed, dozens of buildings were destroyed or left precariously tilted. Upper floors of a major city hospital collapsed, trapping several patients inside and forcing workers to treat roughly 600 people on rubble-strewn streets outside.
Hospital Director Irne Torres Castro told television network Caracol that several pediatric care units were among the destroyed sections.
Search efforts continued around the clock as police, soldiers, and civilian volunteers worked through the night.
Carmen Yasmin Garcia, a 43-year-old Cali resident assisting search operations, said her volunteer group freed seven people from a collapsed building on Monday afternoon, but four people and a dog remained trapped beneath the debris.
“A moment ago there was scratching, but now we can’t hear anything,” Garcia said. “We still have faith that the dog is alive and we can get these people out. We need people with sticks and spades — the more people lending a hand, the better.”
In Pereira, the capital of Risaralda state, authorities reported 66 deaths. Social media footage showed the city’s airport swaying violently during the tremors as large sections of the ceiling collapsed onto passengers seeking cover.
Another 13 deaths were reported in Choco, a rural province near the epicenter of the quake.
Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella, who assumed office just days ago, ordered 1,000 security personnel to deploy to Cali following reports of looting. Local authorities in both Cali and Pereira imposed overnight curfews on Monday.
Messages of international support began arriving Tuesday, including condolences from Chinese President Xi Jinping, who expressed confidence that Colombia would unite to recover and rebuild from the disaster.
