Powerful earthquake shakes Colombia and Ecuador, prompting people to evacuate homes and buildings

The epicentre was in San Jose Del Palmar, a municipality in the Choco region about 250 miles (400 kilometres) west of Colombia's capital, Bogota The governor of the department that includes San Jose Del Palmar reported injuries and serious damage to buildings but did not provide further details. A powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck western Colombia on Monday, shaking the South American nation and neighboring Ecuador and prompting people to evacuate homes and buildings.

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — A powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck western Colombia on Monday, shaking the South American nation and neighboring Ecuador and prompting people to evacuate homes and buildings.The epicenter was in San Jose Del Palmar, a municipality in the Choco region about 250 miles (400 kilometers) west of Colombia’s capital, Bogota, the U.S. Geological Survey and Colombia’s counterpart reported. The USGS said it struck at a depth of 66 miles (107 kilometers).Choco Gov.

Nubia Córdoba said on social media that in the regional capital, “there are injuries and serious damage to buildings,” without providing further details.The temblor follows two back-to-back 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes in Venezuela in late June. Those earthquakes destroyed hundreds of buildings and killed more than 5,000 people. A powerful earthquake in western Colombia on Monday shook the South American nation and neighboring Ecuador, prompting people to evacuate homes and buildings.

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — At least two 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 Bogotá. The epicenter was in San Jose Del Palmar, a community of about 4,800 people in the Choco region about 250 miles (400 kilometers) west of Bogota, the U.S. The USGS said it struck at a depth of 66 miles (107 kilometers).

The quake also was felt in neighboring Ecuador. 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. She didn’t provide further details.

Footage shared by local media outlets showed homes and small buildings collapsing in the cities of Pereira, Cali and Quibdo. In Manizales, a city about 190 miles (300 kilometers) west of Bogota, one of the towers of the neo-Gothic cathedral collapsed and fell on the nave. In Cali, a city 2 million people, Mayor Alejandro Eder said that residents were trapped in at least 19 buildings that had collapsed.