At Least 216 Dead in Colombia’s Strongest Quake in Years

Rescuers continued to search for thousands of missing people Tuesday after a powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck western Colombia earlier this week, killing at least 216 people, injuring almost 2,600 more, leaving nearly 4,000 unaccounted for and collapsing structures across the country.

The quake struck shortly after 7:30 a.m. local time Monday, hitting cities including Cali, Pereira, Quibdó and Manizales, with tremors also felt in neighboring Ecuador and Panama.

The US Geological Survey said the epicenter was near San José del Palmar, a community of about 4,800 people in the Chocó region, about 250 miles west of Bogotá.

The Colombian Geological Service described it as the country’s strongest recorded earthquake “in the 21st century.” Several aftershocks followed.

Officials said around 1,600 buildings were damaged or had collapsed across the country.

In Cali, Colombi…