00:16A race against time is underway in Western Columbia, after a powerful 7.4 magnitude earthquake
00:24killed at least 132 people and left more than 2,700 people reported missing.
00:33And the number of victims could rise. Rescue operations are still continuing, with soldiers,
00:40firefighters, emergency workers, volunteers and relatives digging through collapsed buildings,
00:46searching for any sign of life. The earthquake struck on Monday, and emergency teams have been
00:52working through the night and into Tuesday in some of the worst-hit areas, including Kali and Pereira.
01:00The scale of destruction is enormous. Around 1,600 buildings have been damaged or destroyed,
01:07while several structures were left dangerously unstable. In Kali, one hospital suffered the
01:14collapse of several upper floors, including areas used for pediatric care. Some patients were trapped
01:21inside, and around 600 other patients had to be treated outside, on streets covered with rubble.
01:28But amid the devastation, there have also been dramatic rescues. Two women and two children
01:35were pulled alive from a collapsed building as firefighters continued searching nearby structures.
01:41In Kali, volunteers formed human chains, removing concrete, bricks and debris by hand. Rescuers repeatedly
01:50stopped their work and listened carefully for voices or movement beneath the rubble. Because every sound
01:57could mean someone was still alive. In Pereira, rescue teams said they were in contact with a boy trapped
02:05beneath a bakery. Cranes were brought in to remove dangerous sections of the damaged building, while
02:10rescuers worked to reach him. But the rescue operation is facing another major challenge. The Choco region,
02:18where the earthquake caused significant damage, is remote and difficult to access. The earthquake's epicenter
02:25was near San Jose del Palmar, a community of around 4,800 people. Parts of the region can only be
02:33reached by boat
02:34or plane, making it difficult for authorities to assess the full scale of the destruction. Search dogs,
02:41engineers and rescue teams have now been deployed there. And authorities are warning that the full
02:47picture may not yet be known. At least 700 people were reported injured in Valle del Caca alone,
02:55while authorities have recorded deaths across several regions, including Kali, Risaralva, Choco,
03:01Caldas, and Antioquia. There have also been at least 21 aftershocks, raising concerns for further damage
03:10and making rescue work even more dangerous. For families waiting outside collapsed buildings,
03:16the focus now is simple. Find the missing, reach the trapped, and save as many lives as possible. Because
03:25while the death toll has already reached 132, the rescue operation is far from over.
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