Colombia Earthquake Rescue: Woman Pulled Alive After 36 Hours as Death Toll Passes 265

The 7.4-magnitude earthquake that shattered western Colombia on Monday has claimed at least 265 lives, but amid the grief and the dust of collapsed buildings, rescue teams are clawing through concrete to pull the living from the wreckage. In the city of Pereira, a 32-year-old woman named Daniela Largo was freed after 36 hours trapped beneath a collapsed building, a rare moment of triumph that President Abelardo de la Espriella hailed as "news which fills us with hope." Yet for every miracle, there are hundreds of families still waiting in anguished silence, listening for a voice beneath the rubble that may never come.

Cali, Colombia — The rescue operation unfolding here is a race against time, heat, and the slow creep of despair. In Cali, Colombia's third most populous city with more than two million inhabitants, the Torres del Limonar building has become a symbol of the tragedy. The four-storey structure in the Capri neighbourhood collapsed into a shattered mountain of mattresses, furniture, and personal belongings, with rescuers and volunteers crawling over its remains. Mayor Alejandro Éder has confirmed at least 95 dead in the city, the highest toll in the country, and as of Tuesday afternoon, more than 200 people remained trapped beneath the debris.

A 36-Hour Fight for Daniela Largo in Pereira

The rescue of Daniela Largo in Pereira stands as a testament to the determination of emergency crews. Largo, a 32-year-old woman, was buried under four heavy concrete slabs when the building she was in collapsed. Her mother told the AFP news agency that a local resident heard her daughter cry out for help from beneath the rubble, triggering a 10-hour-long rescue operation that involved local firefighters, colleagues deployed from the capital, Bogotá, and the disaster response team of the national police force. The operation required digging two tunnels. Through one opening, dug from above, rescuers were able to provide Largo with oxygen. But it was only through a second tunnel, dug from below, that they were able to free her. Firefighters used a small camera to locate her before painstakingly carving a path through the debris. She was carried out wrapped in a blue sheet and taken to an ambulance. Her mother said that "at home, her 12-year-old son is waiting for her." In Pereira, a city in Colombia's coffee-growing region, the quake collapsed at least 92 buildings. According to the Association of Colombian Capital Cities (Asocapitales), 79 people are confirmed dead in the city, the second-highest number after Cali. Fifteen people are known to be trapped and another 37 have been reported missing.

Cali's Torres del Limonar: A Mountain of Rubble and Hope

Under the scorching heat of Tuesday morning, the scene at Torres del Limonar is one of grim determination. The building, which held dozens of apartments, is one of more than 50 collapsed structures in Cali. The exact number of tenants inside when it collapsed remains unknown. Around it, apart from some cracks, the rest of the buildings in the neighbourhood seem to have escaped the fate of the Torres. On top of the remains, rescuers and volunteers repeatedly call out: "Silence! We are firefighters. If you can hear us, shout or make any noise." The phrase is repeated every time the teams dig deep enough to believe they may be close to a survivor. These are the moments when Efraín Gallego regains hope. His 80-year-old brother was buried along with his wife when the building collapsed. "You feel anguish. Every time there is an alert about someone being alive, hope is reborn that we will find him," Gallego told BBC Mundo at the scene, his voice breaking as he spoke. He clings to the experience of rescuers who have pulled survivors out after seven days trapped. "Those who are meant to survive, survive. Nothing is written," he added.

Rescuers Report Survivors, But Numbers Remain Fluid

As of Tuesday morning, the rescue effort at Torres del Limonar had yielded some successes. A rescuer at the site said about 10 people had been saved since the collapse. Reports in local media, such as one from Blu Pacífico radio, spoke of six survivors up until a few minutes before the BBC's arrival, including an infant only a few months old. Rescuer James Velasco told reporters that at least two people had been detected alive and that tunnels were being made to get them out. "One of them has to have his leg freed," he said. Mayor Éder declared a nighttime curfew to speed up rescue operations and said that soldiers would be on patrol in the worst-hit areas of Cali. "We need to ensure that the rescue work can be carried out safely," he said, adding that there was still hope of finding more people alive and everyone would do their utmost to free those trapped. As of Tuesday afternoon, 87 people had been rescued in the city.

A Quake Felt Across a Vast Region

The earthquake struck at 07:34 local time (12:34 GMT) on Monday, with its epicentre near the village of San José del Palmar in Chocó province, in the north-west of the country. Seismometers nearest the epicentre registered shaking lasting between 90 seconds and two minutes. The National Geological Service has called it the worst earthquake in Colombia this century. More than 100 aftershocks have been recorded since the initial tremor. The quake's reach was vast, leaving destruction and death not only in Cali and Pereira but also in Chocó and other regions. President Abelardo de la Espriella reported that 496 others remain missing across the affected areas. The figures, as is often the case in the immediate aftermath of such disasters, are closer to estimates than definitive data, with rescue operations still ongoing and communications in some remote areas still disrupted.

Volunteers and Citizens Unite in the Search

Around the remains of Torres del Limonar, the response has been a deeply human one. More than 100 people wait for news, many choosing not to speak, visibly affected. Some sleep exhausted on the ground or on a sofa placed in the street. Others gather together under the shade for support. The hours are long, increasingly so, and the anguish grows. Amid his own torment, Efraín Gallego wants to acknowledge the work of ordinary citizens. "We must mention all the people who have come to help with water, supplies, tools, equipment; there is a lot of collaboration. Volunteers are plentiful," he said. Alejandro Mahecha, 19, is one of those volunteers. He decided to come after spending the night safely with his family and overcoming the initial shock. "I wanted to help from the very beginning. The earthquake affected my city and the homes of people I know. I came to this site because there has been a lot of talk about this building and the need for help here," the young man explained. Together with several friends, Mahecha helps remove rubble, bring water to rescuers, and clear the street to facilitate evacuation efforts. In the background, hammers and saws can be heard creating escape routes through the destruction. They stop only when those present raise their arms, a signal for everyone to remain silent so that survivors can be heard. Gallego waits each time. This time, too, there was no news of his brother.

A Region Braces for the Days Ahead

The rescue efforts in Cali and Pereira are being mirrored across the affected region, with firefighters, military personnel, paramedics, and humanitarian workers converging on the worst-hit areas. The national police disaster response team has been deployed, and support has arrived from Bogotá. The challenge is immense: the scale of the destruction, the number of collapsed buildings, and the sheer volume of debris make every rescue a painstaking operation. For the families waiting outside the rubble, the hope is that the same determination that freed Daniela Largo in Pereira will reach their loved ones in time. The president's words on social media celebrating her rescue reflect a national sentiment: in the midst of tragedy, every life saved is a victory. But with 496 people still missing and hundreds more trapped, the days ahead will be a test of endurance for the rescuers and the nation alike. By Elena Vasquez, Staff Writer

This article was produced with AI-assisted research and editorial support. Reporting is based on sources cited in the article.