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Dramatic rescue: 32-year-old pulled alive from rubble 36 hours after Colombia earthquake
🇬🇷 Greece /Disasters & Emergencies

Dramatic rescue: 32-year-old pulled alive from rubble 36 hours after Colombia earthquake

From Ta Nea · () Greek

Translated from Greek, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified Outcome reported
  • A 32-year-old woman was rescued alive from rubble in Pereira, Colombia, 36 hours after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake.
  • The rescue operation, which involved digging tunnels under concrete slabs, lasted 10 hours.
  • The woman's mother stated her 12-year-old son is waiting for her at home.

Rescuers and onlookers erupted in applause as a 32-year-old woman was pulled alive from the rubble in Pereira, Colombia, 36 hours after a powerful 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck.

Daniela Largo was found beneath the ruins of a building in Pereira after a challenging 10-hour rescue operation. Firefighters managed to reach her by digging a tunnel beneath four heavy concrete slabs. According to AFP via the BBC, a local resident heard Largo calling for help, alerting the authorities. Rescue teams located her using a small camera. The rescue was particularly difficult due to the four slabs blocking passage. Local firefighters, assisted by colleagues from Bogotá and the national police's disaster response team, had to excavate two tunnels to reach the trapped woman.

her 12-year-old son is waiting for her at home

— Daniela Largo's motherThe mother shared details about Largo's family while she was trapped.

Initially, oxygen was supplied to Largo through an opening from above. However, her extrication was only possible through a second tunnel dug from below. Her mother shared that her 12-year-old son is waiting for her at home.

The city's mayor announced a nighttime curfew and stated that soldiers would patrol the most affected areas of Cali. "We must ensure that rescue operations can proceed safely," the mayor declared, emphasizing that hope remains for finding more survivors and assuring that every effort would be made to free those trapped.

We must ensure that rescue operations can proceed safely.

— Mayor of PereiraThe mayor explained the necessity of the curfew and security measures during rescue efforts.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Ta Nea in Greek. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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