Posted Tue 11 Aug 2026 at 12:11amTue 11 Aug 2026 at 12:11am, updated Tue 11 Aug 2026 at 12:40amTue 11 Aug 2026 at 12:40amPeople gather outside a building following an earthquake in Bogota, Colombia, August 10, 2026. (Reuters: Luisa Gonzalez)In short:A magnitude-7.4 earthquake has shaken parts of Colombia and Ecuador, with reports of significant damage in some areas.Columbian President Abelardo De La Espriella says he has assumed leadership of the emergency response.The quake follows two major quakes in Venezuela in late June which killed more than 5,000 people.A powerful earthquake has collapsed buildings and trapped residents under rubble in western Colombia and shaken parts of neighbouring Ecuador.The Colombian geological service and its American counterpart the USGS put the magnitude at 7.4, with an epicentre 100km underground in the west of the country.The National Unit for Disaster Risk Management (UNGRD) said it had begun surveying cities and provinces for damage.Injuries and significant damage were reported in the Pacific Colombian province of Choco, while the mayor of the nearby city of Cali reported that at least 20 buildings had collapsed from the quake, trapping people inside.Footage showed people climbing over rubble attempting to move debris in Cali.Following the quake, Colombian President Abelardo De La Espriella said he had "directly assumed leadership of the emergency response in José del Palma"."I have requested from the director of the UNGRD a detailed report on the situation and the most urgent needs. I will also be personally in Pereira to accompany the affected people and verify the Government's response," he wrote on X."You are not alone. The State is present and acting."The worst reports of damage were in the Colombian city of Cali. (AP: Santiago Saldarriaga)The US's Tsunami Warning System said there was no risk of a tsunami following the earthquake.The provincial governor Nubia Carolina Cordoba-Curi took to X to provide an update on what she described as "a major earthquake", warning local residents about aftershocks."Although the epicentre was near San Jose del Palmar, there are injuries and significant damage to buildings in the capital, Quibdo," she said.Local officials from multiple provinces were reporting damage and collapsed buildings following the quake. (AP: Santiago Saldarriaga)The governor of neighbouring Risaralda province, Juan Diego Patino, told local Blu Radio there was "serious damage to some buildings" in Pereira, the provincial capital."What has just occurred is very severe. The images are truly shocking, with people injured and building facades collapsed," he said.At least six Colombian airports suspended operations after the quake, news agency AFP reported.The temblor follows two back-to-back 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes in Venezuela in late June. Those earthquakes destroyed hundreds of buildings and killed more than 5,000 people.Wires/ABC