Colombia earthquake rescue efforts enter second day as death toll reaches 164

Rescuers in western Colombia worked through the night and into the next day searching for survivors beneath the wreckage after a powerful 7.4 magnitude earthquake devastated parts of the country’s coffee-growing region. The earthquake 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.

At least 164 people have been killed, according to France 24, although other reports put the death toll at 132. The number of casualties is expected to climb as rescue work continues. According to MercoPress, 570 people were injured and over 1,500 homes were damaged, with 37 destroyed and 61 buildings completely collapsed.

The government has declared a state of emergency, and rescue efforts are ongoing. The earthquake was felt across a large area, stretching for hundreds of miles across western Colombia, and was the strongest recorded in the country in the past decade, according to MercoPress.

Brief written by urgent.news from France 24, MercoPress, Capital FM Kenya, Hindustan Times - World News, RTE News — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.