Tremor shook Cali in the early hours of this Friday

An earthquake of 3.8 degrees on the Richter scale was felt strongly in the early hours of this Friday, April 8 in the capital of Valle del Cauca. According to the Colombian Geological Survey (SGC), it was recorded at 1:40 in the morning and because it had a shallow depth of less than 30 kilometers, it could be felt with great impact in some areas of the city.

The Colombian Geological Survey assures in the report that, “Seismic Event - Bulletin Updated 1, 2022-04-08, 01:40 local time Magnitude 3.8, Surface Depth (Less than 30 km), Cali - Valle del Cauca, Colombia”. The epicenter of this was recorded 17 kilometers from the city of Cali. The perceived intensity of this was five, so several people could feel it with great force.

According to the report, this earthquake was felt in some towns near the capital of Vallecauca, such as Palmira, Restrepo, Jamundí, Vijes, La Cumbre and Dagua (Valle del Cauca), as well as in Santander de Quilichao and Morales (Cauca).

So far, the emergency response authorities have not reported any human loss or material damage following the earthquake that occurred at dawn. However, several people on social networks said they felt the earthquake with great force.

“I didn't dream it then”, “Strong here in Cali. I was woken up by the sudden movement of the bed. What a fright”, “It felt very strong in Yumbo”, “It felt very hard here in Cali what a fear God blessed”, “in Dapa it felt... quite momentary, it barely lasted but if we were alert”, “It felt hard because of the superficial... it was not until 3.8 if it had been more... I can't imagine...”, “I felt it strong in the third floor building, south of Cali” , were some of the comments that were recorded by users on social networks.

The last time an earthquake occurred in the city of Cali, was last Monday, November 29, 2021. According to the Colombian Geological Survey, it had a magnitude of 4.6 and was recorded at 3.33 p.m., and the epicenter was the municipality of Bolívar, north of Valle del Cauca and was 126 kilometers deep. This was felt strongly in Jamundí and Buga, the authorities at the time also confirmed that there were no reports of emergencies.

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The Colombian Geological Survey and the National Unit for Risk and Disaster Management say that during an earthquake the first thing people should do is stay calm, as this will allow them to act more safely and give this series of recommendations to be taken into account during an earthquake.

- If you are in an informal construction, try to leave immediately, during departure, monitor your surroundings to identify hazards during evacuation.

- Never use elevators to evacuate.

- Do not place under the door frames, as it is not a safe place, the frame helps to dissipate the energy of the earthquake, so it can break and collapse.

- If you are in a wheelchair, place yourself next to a column or safe place, brake the chair and protect your head with your arms. Make sure that in your place of study and work, they have specific measures in place to support you in evacuation.

- If you are lying down and cannot go to a safe place, stay in bed or on the side and protect your head with your arms or pillow.

- If you are on the street, observe your surroundings and find a safe place. Try to stay away from poles and cables. Move away from the facades as parts of it may fall.

- If you are driving a vehicle on the streets of a city or municipality and you notice an earthquake, slow down and, if possible, stop in a safe place (away from poles, cables, fences).

- If you are driving on an urban highway, don't stop, slow down and look for bays, berms or other safe places where you can stop.

- If you are driving on the road, slow down but don't stop, find a safe place to park.

- If you are driving in a tunnel, slow down and if possible look for the internal parking niches to stop.

- If you are in a public place such as a theater or cinema, stay in your chair, protect your head with your arms and wait for the earthquake to end, then evacuate.

- Remain calm and make sure that others do it too, if there is an assonada (stampede) caused by panic, do not stand still at a fixed point, move with all people.

- Check your physical condition, that of your family and close people, if you can, help people who require it

- If you are still in your home and in the face of strong earthquakes, cut off gas, energy and water supplies

- Check your home for signs of possible collapse or serious structural damage.

- If the earthquake has caused structures to collapse and there are signs of people trapped under the rubble, do not try to rescue them, it may put your life and that of others at risk.

- If you are locked up, remain calm and look for windows or other means to indicate that you are there and that you need help

- If you are trapped in the debris, but you have no parts of your body pressed, try to protect your mouth and nose from inhaling dust. Try to look for exits or signs that indicate a possible evacuation route. If you have bleeding wounds, put direct pressure on the wound with a piece of clothing or tissue. Avoid shouting, your voice is unlikely to be enough for them to hear, if you have a whistle, use it, or look for metal elements that you can hit.

- If when going outside, you find poles on the floor and electrical wires, be careful not to touch or move them.

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