Colombia’s earthquake leaves thousands without homes, as government promises rent subsidies
For the past four days, Yuly Paola Ruiz has been sleeping at a sports arena in the city of Cali with her 7-year-old daughter, her two nephews and her sister.
The roof of her home collapsed during last Monday’s earthquake in western Colombia and it hasn’t been easy for Ruiz to find a new place to stay. She’s a nursing assistant in Cali, where she makes around $700 a month.
“It’s really hard to rent a new place now,” she said. “It’s more expensive because there’s less supply and many homes sustained some damage. Even if they didn’t collapse entirely, the landlords are waiting to fix them.”
According to Cali’s municipal government, 46 buildings in the city collapsed during last week’s 7.4-magnitude earthquake.Manuel Rueda/The World
The 7.4-magnitude quake that struck Colombia last week has killed at least 287 people, according to Colombia’s central government, with an additional 194 still reported as missing.
In Cali, one of the cities hit hardest by the earthquake, 46 buildings collapsed, according to the municipal government, and an additional 533 buildings have been ordered to be evacuated. Rescue teams are still searching through the rubble at seven different sites, hoping to find survivors.
A volunteer asks for silence outside Edificio Vanessa, as rescue crews try to listen for signs of life beneath the rubble.
Manuel Rueda/The World
But as it becomes increasingly difficult to find people trapped under the rubble, authorities are starting to plan to rebuild the city and help those left without homes.
Alejandro Eder, Cali’s mayor, said Saturday that reconstruction efforts will cost around $3.2 billion dollars over the next three years, with about 40% of that going towards humanitarian support and the rest towards fixing infrastructure, and making buildings more earthquake-resistant.
Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella, who was sworn into office earlier this month, has said he will draft an economic emergency decree that will make it easier for the government to raise taxes for earthquake recovery efforts. One measure that Colombia’s new president has promised is subsidies for earthquake victims so that they can rent new homes.
Volunteers line up outside Edificio Vanessa in Cali, a seven-story building where rescue workers are still hoping to find people trapped under the rubble.Manuel Rueda/The World
According to the central government, the earthquake destroyed at least 26,000 homes around the country, and damaged an additional 127,000.
In Cali, neighborhoods are dotted with apartment buildings that have cracked walls or where chunks of the facades have fallen, revealing bedrooms and living rooms.
Luis Fernando Viveros’ seven-story apartment building in the south of the city is still standing. But it’s no longer inhabitable because of the damage it sustained during the quake.
Luis Fernando Viveros’ building survived the earthquake but it sustained serious damage, and is no longer inhabitable. Authorities will likely have to demolish it.Manuel Rueda/The World
Three days after the earthquake Viveros and his brother went into their apartment on the sixth floor to rescue some items, including a bed and a doll that belonged to his grandmother, which they will now send to a storage facility.
“We’re staying with a cousin now,” Viveros explained. “But it’s going to be hard to get set up in Cali again, because finding a place to rent will be very hard.”
He figured that for the moment, the best option for his family will be to move to another city.
“The important thing is we’re alive,” he said.
Bulldozers clear the rubble outside a hotel that partially collapsed during last week’s earthquake in Colombia.Manuel Rueda/The World
Around the city, volunteers have set up spots to collect aid for the earthquake victims.
To the west of the city, a large pavilion that was going to be used for a food and music festival last week has been turned into a logistical hub.
Over the weekend, hundreds of volunteers showed up to sort donations of clothes, food, mattresses and tools, and load them onto trucks that will distribute the aid to earthquake victims in Cali and other nearby cities.
Volunteers gather supplies for earthquake victims at a pavilion that has been turned into a logistics hub. The site was going to be used for a music festival.Manuel Rueda/The World
Lina Jaramillo, a volunteer, said that showing up to help others enabled her to “relieve some of the stress” that the earthquake had caused.
She was helping to make aid packages with non-perishable foods, toilet paper, toothpaste and soap that will be delivered to hard-hit areas outside Cali.
“My apartment was also damaged by the earthquake but I didn’t suffer as much as people who lost their loved ones or are still searching for their relatives,” Jaramillo, who’s currently staying with her sister, said. “So, I’ve come here to do my part.”
Volunteers have helped to sort donations of clothes, food, mattresses and tools, and load them onto trucks distributing the aid to earthquake victims in Cali and other nearby cities.Manuel Rueda/The World
She’s now waiting for engineers to evaluate the status of her building.
Meanwhile, Luz Narvaez, 62, said that her small house in a hillside neighborhood survived the earthquake.
But it has become hard to live there because much of the roof collapsed. At night she and her husband sit on a chair outside the front door to prevent thieves from looting their possessions.
“The humanitarian aid is good, but it will only last so long,” Narvaez said. “What we will need is long-term support so we can stay here and rebuild our homes.”