Cali (Colombia).- Hospitals in Cali, the capital of the Valle del Cauca department and one of the cities most affected by the earthquake that struck Colombia this Monday, have declared a red hospital alert as they are at 100% capacity, after the quake left at least 26 dead and 456 injured, according to the city’s Secretary of Health, Germán Escobar.
Four large medical centers had to be completely evacuated, including the Evaristo García University Hospital of the Valley (HUV), which suffered the partial collapse of one of its wings, according to the preliminary report from the Cali Public Health Secretariat.
At this health center, one of the most important in the southwest of the country, medical staff are attending to patients under tents set up in one of its gardens while the damage is assessed and care is reorganized following the earthquake.
The Nuestra Cali Clinic, the Dessa Clinic, and the Colombia Clinic also present structural damage.
Authorities ordered the temporary cancellation and rescheduling of surgeries, outpatient consultations, and priority consultations that were not of extreme urgency, with the goal of freeing up capacity to attend to those affected by the earthquake.
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The severity of the earthquake in Colombia
The earthquake, with a magnitude of 7.4 according to the Colombian Geological Service (SGC), was felt at 07:34 local time (12:34 GMT) and had its epicenter in the municipality of San José del Palmar, in Chocó, at a depth of 103 kilometers, and caused damage in a large part of the center and west of the country.
So far, the national report amounts to 111 dead, 87 injured, 1,575 damaged homes, 37 completely destroyed, and 61 collapsed buildings, according to what Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella said in his first public statement after the earthquake.
