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Video: Terrifying Seconds as Father Saves Baby During Pereira Earthquake: 'The Apartment Collapsed on Us'
🇨🇴 Colombia /Disasters & Emergencies

Video: Terrifying Seconds as Father Saves Baby During Pereira Earthquake: 'The Apartment Collapsed on Us'

From El Tiempo · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

In-depth Sources not specified Ongoing story
  • A father in Pereira, Colombia, narrowly escaped a collapsing apartment with his baby during a strong earthquake.
  • The incident occurred during a routine morning, turning his home into a dangerous trap.
  • The earthquake caused significant damage in Pereira, particularly in the city center, leaving many buildings affected.

Juan Felipe Mercado clutched his 18-month-old daughter, María Belén, as the ground beneath his Pereira apartment violently shook. What began as a subtle vibration quickly escalated into a violent tremor, threatening to bring the entire building down around them. The 37-year-old, who has lived in the city for a decade, described his home near Avenida 30 de Agosto transforming into a death trap in mere seconds.

When I started to see the walls cracking, everything falling, and the door frame cracked, we all got out

— Juan Felipe MercadoDescribing the terrifying moments inside his apartment as the earthquake struck.

"When I started to see the walls cracking, everything falling, and the door frame cracked, we all got out," Mercado recounted. Adrenaline surged as he fled with his baby and two elderly women. A wall from the main bedroom collapsed just behind them as they rushed for the exit of their residential building. "We were almost crushed by that wall. With the girl in my arms, in the panic, it was hell. I never thought I would live through something like this," he confessed, still processing the destruction.

He managed to send an audio message to relatives in Medellín, confirming they were alive: "Our apartment collapsed, we almost didn't make it out." His wife was fortunately at a medical appointment and missed the terrifying ordeal. The earthquake left the capital of Risaralda in critical condition, with the city center experiencing widespread damage and collapsed buildings. In their building, burst pipes flooded the parking lots, and falling roof tiles damaged several vehicles, though Mercado's car was spared.

We were almost crushed by that wall. With the girl in my arms, in the panic, it was hell. I never thought I would live through something like this

— Juan Felipe MercadoExpressing the extreme fear and shock during his escape with his daughter.

Mercado and his family are now staying with friends as they await permission to salvage belongings from their damaged apartment. The event underscores the terrifying reality of natural disasters and the immediate danger faced by residents during seismic activity.

Our apartment collapsed, we almost didn't make it out

— Juan Felipe MercadoRelaying the immediate aftermath to his family.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by El Tiempo in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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