At least 20 people were killed and dozens of buildings collapsed in cities across western Colombia on Monday after a powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck the South American nation, trapping residents under debris, leaving more injured and forcing people to evacuate their homes as far as the capital of Bogota.

The epicentre was in San Jose Del Palmar, a community of about 4,800 people in the Choco region about 400 kilometres west of Bogota, the US Geological Survey and Colombia’s counterpart reported.

The USGS said it struck at a depth of 107 kilometres.

The quake was also felt in neighbouring Ecuador.

Choco governor Nubia Córdoba said on social media that “there are injuries and serious damage to buildings" in the regional capital of Quibdó, a city of about 130,000 people.

Footage shared by local media outlets showed homes and small buildings collapsing in the cities of Pereira, Cali and Quibdo. Pereira is a major city in Colombia's coffee-growing region.

In Manizales, a city about 300 kilometres west of Bogota, one of the towers of the neo-Gothic cathedral collapsed and fell on the nave.

In Cali, a city of two million people, Mayor Alejandro Eder said that residents were trapped in at least 19 buildings that had collapsed.

Colombia's civil aviation authority said flights were suspended ⁠at airports in Pereira, Manizales, Quibdo, Armenia, Cartago and Buenaventura, while inspectors checked for structural damage.

President Abelardo de la Espriella said on Monday that he had personally taken charge of the government’s response to the emergency in San José del Palmar following the earthquake that struck the country.

“You are not alone. The state is present and taking action,” he said.

The quake follows two back-to-back 7.2- and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes in Venezuela in late June. Those quakes destroyed hundreds of buildings and killed more than 5,000 people. (AP/Reuters)



Edited by Edmond Fong