An earthquake on Monday caused injuries and significant damage in a province on Colombia’s Pacific Coast as well as the city of Pereira, provincial governors said, after the tremor was felt in the capital Bogota and as far away as Venezuela.
Colombia’s geological service said the magnitude of the quake, which struck at 7.30am local time (1.30pm UK time), was 7.4 and that its depth was 60 miles. The US tsunami warning system said there was no tsunami warning.
Both reported the epicenter in San Jose Del Palmar, a community about 250 miles west of Colombia’s capital, Bogota
The mayor of Cali, a city of 2.3million people in Colombia’s west, said at least 20 buildings had collapsed following the earthquake.
It was felt in Ecuador and as far away as Panama to the north, and prompted building evacuations in Bogota.
Choco governor Nubia Carolina Cordoba-Curi said on X: ‘We have just experienced a major earthquake in the department of Choco. We are concerned about aftershocks.
‘Although the epicenter was near San Jose del Palmar, there are injuries and significant damage to buildings in the capital, Quibdo. We are already carrying out a damage assessment and will issue the first official report shortly.’
The governor of neighbouring Risaralda province, Juan Diego Patino, told local Blu Radio there was ‘serious damage to some buildings’ in Pereira, the provincial capital.
‘What has just occurred is very severe. The images are truly shocking, with people injured and building facades collapsed,’ he said.
Vehicles damaged by a collapsed wall are seen following an earthquake in Cali, Colombia, August 10 2026
Colombia’s National Unit for Disaster Risk Management said it was in contact with local authorities to verify potential damage.
Bogota’s mayor, Carlos Galan, said on X there was no major damage in the capital.
Reuters witnesses in the Venezuelan border state of Tachira and the central-western city of Barquisimeto reported the quake had been felt there.
Following the quake, the country’s aviation authority said flights from six airports had been suspended.
UAEAC said damage was reported at the airports of Pereira, Manizales, Quibdo, Armenia, Cartago and Buenaventura.
Venezuela was hit by devastating twin earthquakes in June, which killed more than 6,000 people, mostly on the coast near the capital, Caracas.
More to follow.
