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72-hour window nears end
A 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck western Colombia early Monday, killing 273 people, injuring more than 3,800, and leaving almost 400 missing as rescuers in Cali and Pereira worked through a third night.
“Our efforts are focused on the disappeared”
Colombia’s President Abelardo de la Espriella told journalists in Bogotá, Colombia’s capital, that "Our efforts are focused on the disappeared," as the critical 72-hour window neared its end.
Cali resident Martha Perez said she felt "helpless" as two relatives were thought to still be trapped under rubble, while volunteer rescuer Fernando Loaiza said, "We will hold on to (hope) until the very end."
In Pereira, crews focused on a collapsed bakery where they believed a street vendor trapped since Monday’s earthquake may still be alive beneath the rubble, and rescuers using equipment that detects vibrations picked up possible signs of life from Pablo Loaiza.
The CBS News report said the magnitude 7.4 quake was "the strongest to hit Colombia this century" and that more than 12,500 families were affected, with de la Espriella declaring the disaster an "economic emergency" and announcing three days of national mourning.
Hospitals adapt as damage spreads
At the University Hospital of the Valle Evaristo Garcia in Cali, health workers moved through a courtyard beneath a white facade split by deep fissures after the rear of the hospital partially collapsed on Monday.
General practitioner Carlos Naranjo said "some walls are no longer stable, some ceilings have collapsed, and it is still dangerous to walk through," and he told Al Jazeera that some 50 percent of the facility was damaged.
With most of the hospital off-limits, medical staff turned away the vast majority of patients and were able to treat only those who required immediate resuscitation, while city authorities warned public hospitals in Cali were at 100 percent capacity and declared a "red alert for hospitals."
By Wednesday, Al Jazeera reported that the United Nations’ Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said the "hospital system has stabilised as patients have been discharged and the number of new admissions has decreased."
Cali’s public health secretary German Escobar said the city implemented a plan to create "expansion zones" to handle the surge in patients, including utilising operating rooms and recovery areas and using temporary field clinics at Clinica Nuestra.
U.S. teams and aid
As the search for survivors continued, the United States announced $15.5 million in emergency aid to Colombia and the European Union pledged $2.3 million, while long lines formed outside blood donation centers.
“#LACoFD USA-2 team has arrived in Colombia alongside USA-1”
The KTLA report said a team of Los Angeles County firefighters arrived in Colombia to assist with search-and-rescue efforts, posting on Instagram that the "#LACoFD USA-2 team has arrived in Colombia alongside USA-1" to help with coordination and structural engineering assessments.
KTLA added that rescue teams were racing to find survivors three days after the earthquake, which was followed by more than 100 aftershocks, and it said at least 265 people had died with hundreds more missing.
ABC News said the State Department deployed U.S. urban search and rescue teams comprised of about 40 people in total to Colombia on Wednesday to assist local first responders, and it reported that the updated death toll came Thursday from David Santiago Tamayo, director-general of Colombia's Disaster Risk Management Unit.
In Cali, ABC News quoted Cali Mayor Alejandro Eder saying, "Every minute counts in this race to save lives," as rescue efforts centered in the south of the city near the Clinica Colombia health center and soldiers of the Colombian army's Third Brigade deployed a canine team, a thermal-capable drone and specialized equipment.
