The Church Mobilizes After Colombia’s Deadliest Quake in Decades

And some claim the Church serves no purpose!

From Aleteia

By Daniel Esparza

A 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck western Colombia on August 10, killing at least 132 people. The epicenter is in one of the country’s poorest regions.

At least 132 people were killed and dozens of buildings collapsed across western Colombia on Monday after a 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck the South American nation — the strongest to hit the country this century, according to Colombia’s Geological Service. The death toll is expected to rise as rescue teams continue to search through rubble in several cities that remain under red alert.

The epicenter was in San José del Palmar, a community of about 4,800 people in the Chocó region, roughly 250 miles west of Bogotá. The quake struck at a depth of 66 miles and was followed by at least 21 aftershocks within hours. The cities of Cali, Pereira, and Manizales sustained severe damage. Around 1,600 buildings were damaged, including at least 61 that completely collapsed. Seven airports have suspended operations, and hospitals, roads, aqueducts, energy, and telecommunications have been disrupted across the affected areas.

In Chocó, near the epicenter, communications outages slowed initial reporting, with some areas still lacking mobile phone service hours after the earthquake. Governor Nubia Carolina Córdoba said 12 people had been killed and 84 injured in the largely rural area. The Chocó department is Colombia’s poorest, where more than two-thirds of the population live in poverty, and much of the region is accessible only by air or water because it has few roads. Those conditions are expected to complicate relief operations in the days ahead.

Most of the deaths were reported in provinces neighboring Chocó — at least 40 in the Risaralda region, where the hard-hit city of Pereira is located, and 27 in the Valle del Cauca region, where Cali sustained major damage. In Cali, search teams and civilians picked through the remains of destroyed buildings, passing large pieces of concrete down long lines of volunteers. Local officials said at least 20 buildings crumbled while 380 were damaged, trapping many people.

Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella declared a national emergency and said he would travel to Quibdó, the capital of Chocó. “You are not alone,” he said in a video message. “Colombia has a president who cares about the people and who will do everything in his power to help them in the most difficult moments.”

Aid to the Church in Need has approved emergency funding to support the Catholic Church in Colombia as it responds to the disaster. The pontifical foundation — which has provided continuous support to Chocó province in recent years precisely because of its poverty and isolation — is coordinating with local dioceses to assess damage to parish buildings and identify the most urgent pastoral and humanitarian needs. Local dioceses have reported widespread damage to churches and other Catholic facilities across the affected region. According to John Burger, Communications Consultant for ACN USA, the foundation will closely monitor damage assessments in the coming days to determine the scope of its long-term response.

“Our teams near the epicenter in Chocó are reporting damages to infrastructure, including to hospitals and clinics,” said Nicole Kast, the International Rescue Committee’s Country Director for Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador. “Impacted communities were already facing armed conflict and high levels of poverty before the ground began to shake.”

As Aleteia reported during the Venezuela earthquakes in June, the Catholic Church has consistently been among the first institutions to mobilize in Latin American disaster zones — opening parish facilities, activating Caritas networks, and providing pastoral accompaniment alongside material aid. The same pattern is now unfolding in Colombia.

Pope Leo XIV has not yet issued a public statement on the earthquake, but the Vatican is expected to respond in the coming hours. To support ACN’s response in Colombia, visit churchinneed.org.