MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

At least 111 dead in the magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck western Colombia

Pereira and its metropolitan area account for most of the dead

At least 111 people were killed and 87 injured by the magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck western and central Colombia on Monday, according to the official toll given by President Abelardo de la Espriella as of 12:30 local time. Authorities warned the figure is preliminary and that rescue work is continuing.

The quake struck at 07:34, with its epicenter near the municipality of San José del Palmar, in Chocó department, at a depth of more than 80 kilometers, according to the Colombian Geological Service. It is the strongest recorded in the country in the past decade.

Pereira and its metropolitan area account for most of the dead. Departmental tolls released by governors and mayors correspond to different cutoff times and do not match one another: Chocó governor Nubia Carolina Córdoba-Curi reported 12 dead and 84 injured in that department, while the mayor of Manizales confirmed two deaths. Fatalities were also reported in Valle del Cauca and Antioquia.

| URGENTE: Momento del derrumbe de un edificio de 3 pisos tras el terremoto de magnitud 7,4 en Pereira, Colombia. pic.twitter.com/r3v2lW5pU3

— Alerta News 24 (@AlertaNews24) August 10, 2026

The government put the number of damaged homes at more than 1,500, with 37 destroyed and 61 buildings completely collapsed, along with damage to 18 health centers, 52 schools, 17 community centers and 18 roads. The civil aviation authority suspended operations at seven air terminals: Cali, Pereira, Manizales, Quibdó, Armenia, Cartago and Buenaventura.

Damage to the hospital network is among the most critical. In Cali, the Hospital Universitario del Valle partially collapsed and seven large health care institutions were closed and evacuated because of structural damage. Valle del Cauca governor Dilian Francisca Toro said at least five intensive care patients were trapped under rubble. Cali mayor Alejandro Eder reported at least twenty collapsed structures with people trapped inside and requested rescue teams from Bogotá and Medellín. The capital's mayor, Carlos Fernando Galán, dispatched a hundred rescue workers.

De la Espriella agreed to declare a national disaster situation and is leading a unified command post at the National Disaster Risk Management Unit, with additional posts in Armenia and Quibdó. The foreign ministry is coordinating international cooperation. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc was ready to provide assistance.

The Colombian Geological Service reported two aftershocks, of magnitude 2.8 and 4.8. The agency also recorded an emission of ash and gases from the Puracé volcano, in Cauca department, on orange alert since July, coinciding in time with the earthquake.