It reminded me of the 2010 earthquake: the story of Chileans who experienced the strong quake in Colombia

Chile is not the only South American country suffering from earthquakes. There are others in the region with a significant seismic history. One of these is Colombia. The coffee-producing country was hit by a strong 7.5 magnitude earthquake on August 10 at 7:34 a.m. (8:34 in Chile), occurring about 96 kilometers below the surface, according to the Colombian Geological Service (SGC). Cataloged as the largest earthquake recorded in Colombia in the last decade, its epicenter was 5 kilometers east of San José del Palmar, in Pereira. As of the time of writing, according to Colombia's president, Abelardo de la Espriella, there were 111 fatalities, 87 injured, 1,575 affected homes, 61 collapsed buildings, as well as 18 damaged roads and six airports out of service. Earthquake in Colombia. Among those who experienced and felt the seismic event are some Chileans living or working in Colombia. So far, no compatriots have been reported among the victims. Hector Castañeda, a journalist residing in Bogotá, acknowledges that the quake “was long, lasted quite a few seconds. More towards the coast, where the epicenter was, some buildings collapsed. People are still scared, they went out into the streets. They are not used to such a long movement here. And since it didn't stop, alarms started sounding.” Unlike the Colombian people, he says, “my children and I, like good Chileans, stayed here at home,” referring to the habit of dealing with seismic movements. Jezer Igor, a Chilean born in Puerto Montt who lives most of the year in Colombia, had a similar experience. Working in tourism, he recounts that on Monday morning he was on the coast during the earthquake. “From the governor's offices and mayor's offices, reports came of fatalities between Cali and Medellín. I tried to contact some friends in the city, but phone lines are overwhelmed,” he says, adding that he has learned of damaged buildings, mainly in Popayán, in Valle del Cauca, and in Bogotá. “I am waiting for more news and for people in Cali to respond, where there was significant damage,” he reveals. The Chilean adds that “the earthquake reminded me of the 2010 Chile quake. Neighborhood residents went out into the streets. It causes concern because here buildings are not usually earthquake-resistant,” he admits. Cristóbal Cassanello, an industrial civil engineer, also lives in Bogotá. “I was having breakfast when everything started to move. At first, I thought it was a small tremor, but it didn't stop and moved differently, like in circles. That immediately reminded me of 27F.” “What struck me was that I never received the cell phone alert, I suppose because I am a foreigner. I still went outside and people behaved incredibly. Everyone went out into the street calmly and waited for it to pass, without shouting or running. It hasn't shaken strongly here in years. We are used to it; they are not,” he adds. Cassanello notes that “in Chile, you grow up knowing that your house can withstand it. Here, that's not the case, and that difference hurts today.” A similar situation is described by Nelson Santana, born in Punta Arenas and married to a Colombian for 7 years. He admits they had a big scare. “Among what happened, I was struck by the order of people leaving the street, although it still felt very strong. There was a lot of fear, in addition to buildings that are not earthquake-resistant collapsing.” Affected house in Colombia. The recent seismic event gains greater significance when considering historical records in the field. Since 1950, only two earthquakes of magnitude 7 or higher have been recorded in Colombia at less than 250 km depth, both closer to the coast. The 1999 Armenia earthquake is known as the deadliest and most destructive in the country's history, with approximately 2,000 fatalities. Occurring on the Nazca plate, the current one was in an area known as the Cauca seismic cluster, which has recorded significant events in the past: one in 1996 with a magnitude of 6.5 Mw. Another Chilean in Colombia is Hugo Pelay, a businessman, who states that the earthquake was felt strongly, similar to a six-degree quake in Santiago. “The most affected areas are Cali and the coffee axis, which includes Armenia, Pereira, and Manizales, where many buildings collapsed, although they are very old, not modern.” “In general, Colombia is prepared to evacuate, as are companies, considering evacuation points and everything related, but right now there are problems with families, as well as broken walls and the fear of aftershocks, especially after what happened in Venezuela,” he says. Meanwhile, Yerko Lobos, a public relations officer and commercial deputy manager of a factoring company, recalls that “everyone immediately went down to the first floor, gathering in a safe zone, with lots of shouting, as people started to panic because it’s not very common and it was strong for them.” Andrés Fuenzalida, a geophysicist from the University of Chile and a doctor in Seismology, who is currently working in the affected country (living in Bogotá), adds that “I felt it while I was in the car. Personally, it was the strongest I’ve felt since I’ve been living here, since 2009.” “There are damages in the epicenter area, which is the Chocó department, and in the cities of Pereira and Manizales near Chocó. The damages are in masonry and some buildings with facade damage and fallen blocks. A few buildings have collapsed,” says Fuenzalida, who previously worked with the Colombian Geological Service.