Death toll from massive earthquake in Colombia rises to 169

The death toll from Monday's powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake in Colombia has risen to at least 181, causing buildings to collapse and triggering large-scale rescue operations across multiple cities, local media reported on Tuesday.

At least 1,310 people were also injured in the natural calamity, according to the Colombian Association of Capital Cities.

Cali and Pereira are the most severely damaged cities, with 56 and 66 buildings collapsed, respectively.

Cali has the highest death toll among the affected cities, with 95 people killed, followed by 72 in Pereira. Cali also recorded 885 people injured.

Quibdo, Cali, Manizales, Pereira and Armenia are under red alert as a result of the disaster.

Flights at airports in Pereira, Manizales, Quibdo, Armenia, Cartago,and Buenaventura remain suspended.

Earlier on Monday, President Abelardo De La Espriella told reporters that the disaster caused damage to 1,575 homes, with 37 completely destroyed, 61 collapsed buildings, 18 damaged health centers, 52 damaged educational centers, 17 damaged community centers and 18 damaged roads.

The Colombian government has declared a national disaster situation to strengthen the mobilization and coordination of institutional capacities to address the emergency.

The earthquake occurred at 7.34 am local time (1234GMT), with the epicenter located approximately 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) east of the town of San Jose del Palmar, according to data from the US Geological Survey. The agency reported that the quake originated at a depth of 107 kilometers (66.5 miles).

A magnitude 5.0 aftershock struck at 8.18 am (1318GMT), approximately 16 kilometers (9.9 miles) west of San Jose del Palmar. The municipality, located in the Choco Department, has a population of around 4,800 and sits 1,288 meters (4,225 feet) above sea level.