The tower of Colombia’s tallest cathedral has collapsed after a powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck the country, killing at least 160 people and leaving hundreds more affected.
The tower of the nearly 100-year-old Catedral Basílica Metropolitana Nuestra Señora del Rosario came down following the earthquake, with debris scattered across nearby streets.
The basilica is the tallest in Colombia and has survived several major earthquakes, including one in 1938 while it was still under construction. In 1962, another earthquake caused one of its lateral towers to collapse.
The latest earthquake had its epicentre in the department of Chocó and prompted the government to declare a state of emergency.
Church communities across Colombia have since rallied to support those affected, while several other churches and religious buildings have also suffered significant damage.
Colombia’s President Aberlardo De La Espriella, who was sworn into office on Friday, said he would personally lead emergency response efforts from the capital, Bogota.
“To the Colombians who are going through difficult times today, I want to say: you are not alone,” he wrote on X.
In Manizales, the church in the El Carmen neighbourhood has been destroyed. Images show the collapse of the church’s roof from the outside.
Another church severely affected was the Nuestra Señora Del Carmen, OCD – San José Church, in the Diocese of Pereira.
Video shared on social media appears to show people on the street struggling to remain on their feet as the upper part of the central nave’s façade collapses onto the church’s atrium.
Meanwhile, the Redemptorist missionaries who run the Basilica of the Lord of Miracles in Buga reported that the building has suffered “partial damage, including cracks in the central dome and falling debris”.
The sanctuary will remain closed “whilst a technical assessment is carried out (...) to determine the condition of the structure and assess any potential risks”.
The Archdiocese of Popayán, in the department of Cauca, said it had received reports of damage to parishes in the municipalities of El Tambo, Morales, Totoró and Caldono, as well as to the Church of Santo Domingo in Popayán.
The Augustinian Recollect Missionary Sisters of the Convent of La Merced in Cali, in the department of Valle del Cauca, reported that the church “suffered the most severe destruction in its history, with the collapse of the roof over the chancel and cracks in its walls”.