Twenty-four hours after a 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck Colombia on Monday morning, the death toll continues to climb. According to the latest report from the Colombian Association of Capital Cities (Asocapitales), released Tuesday, at least 169 people have died and more than 900 have been injured, with officials warning the figures could still rise as rescue operations continue in the hardest-hit areas. The quake was centered 12 kilometers from San José del Palmar, in the Chocó region, at a depth of 103 kilometers, according to Colombia's Geological Survey.

The impact has been concentrated overwhelmingly in the country's capital cities. Cali reported the highest number of fatalities, with more than 5,000 homes damaged or destroyed, three hospitals knocked out of service and 18 others structurally damaged; Mayor Alejandro Eder imposed a curfew and deployed the military after reports of looting during rescue efforts. Pereira, the city closest to the epicenter, recorded the second-highest death toll, with buildings collapsed in its downtown core, 16 people trapped in a public cable-car system, and its Matecaña airport closed due to roof damage. Quibdó, Manizales and Armenia round out the red-alert zone, with more than 80 buildings collapsed and at least six airports nationwide suspending operations. In Manizales, the collapse of one of the cathedral's towers became one of the most striking images of the destruction.

One of the most painful episodes occurred at a school in Calima, in Valle del Cauca, where four children died and 20 others were injured when part of the building collapsed during the quake. Meanwhile, the ground has not stopped shaking in Chocó: local media reported a series of aftershocks overnight Tuesday in Istmina and San José del Palmar, keeping rescue crews and residents on edge.

The earthquake also crippled telecommunications, knocking out more than 3,400 cell towers across seven departments and complicating efforts to locate missing people and coordinate humanitarian aid. In Quibdó, the local hospital issued an urgent appeal for medicine and medical supplies as its capacity was overwhelmed. Army commander Gen. Royer Gómez Herrera traveled to Chocó alongside the region's governor to help coordinate the national disaster-response system on the ground.

President Abelardo De La Espriella declared a national disaster hours after the quake and traveled personally to the affected areas, where he announced emergency measures and led a joint command post in Cali alongside Mayor Eder and Valle del Cauca Gov. Dilian Francisco Toro. There, he acknowledged that hundreds of people remain unaccounted for and pledged to coordinate national, regional and local authorities to intensify search efforts. Separately, Senate President Honorio Henríquez called on all lawmakers to donate a month's salary to victims.

The disaster has also triggered a wave of international and domestic solidarity. Pope Leo XIV expressed his sorrow for the victims and offered prayers for Colombia in a telegram sent through Cardinal Pietro Parolin. Germany and the United States — the latter pledging $15.5 million in aid — voiced their support, while Bogotá opened six donation centers for those affected. Colombia's diaspora community in Argentina has also organized a solidarity campaign to assist victims of what is already being called the country's most devastating earthquake in 27 years.