The magnitude 6.6 tremor that occurred a couple of days ago in the Caribbean Sea, very close to the coastal municipalities of Antioquia, caused serious damage. For this reason, the local authorities declared a public calamity in Necoclí.
After a disaster risk management committee that was recently held in the municipality, the measure was established with the aim of seeking a prompt solution to the infrastructure damage that was reported.
According to the report delivered by the Necoclí Mayor’s Office, the administration headquarters presents serious cracks that force its transfer to another space. The same happened with at least eight educational institutions in different areas of the municipality.
With the declaration of public calamity in Necoclí, due to the ravages left by the strong tremor, it is expected to be able to mobilize the resources required to attend to these emergencies in a faster and more agile way.
The municipality’s Disaster Risk Management Secretary, César Augusto Zúñiga, indicated that the administration hopes that the departmental and national governments will heed the call that is being made and support the search for solutions to the infrastructure problems left behind by the earthquake.
The greatest concern of the local authorities, according to the official, are the damages registered in the educational institutions. It is noteworthy that of the eight establishments that were affected, six are located in rural areas.
“We call on the departmental and national government to support us in the search for solutions to help solve the whole issue of rural educational institutions that were affected and the same plant of the municipal administration that is quite cracked” , expressed the secretary of Disaster Risk Management of Necoclí, quoted by the Blu Radio station.
The strong tremor that was felt on the border between Colombia and Panama
The magnitude 6.6 earthquake in the border area between Colombia and Panama triggered alarms on the Colombian Caribbean coast, as it was perceived by thousands of citizens who feared the possibility of a tsunami originating.
Despite the magnitude of the earthquake and its subsequent aftershocks, the National Unit for Disaster Risk Management (Ungrd) reported that, according to a report from the General Maritime and Port Directorate of Colombia (Dimar) that was issued at the time , the threat of a tsunami in the Colombian Caribbean was ruled out.
In videos, inhabitants of municipalities such as Necoclí and Capurganá, in Urabá, Antioquia, revealed the delicate situation in the region around 10:05 p.m. on May 24. Fallen shelves, detached roofs and, clearly, the fear of living in a coastal area before the eventual arrival of large waves, was the result of those minutes that the movement lasted.
Citizens had to take to the streets terrified by the strong shaking that occurred in their homes. Even this tremor was not only perceived in the aforementioned region, the movement extended to the center and west of Colombia, from where citizens sent reports through social networks.
Despite the fact that the epicenter of the movement was registered in the Caribbean Sea, on the border between Colombia and Panama, it was felt in at least 18 departments of Colombia. The territories from where they reported the movement are: Antioquia, Córdoba, Santander, Bogotá DC, Risaralda, Caldas, Norte De Santander, Bolívar, Boyacá, Quindío, Cundinamarca, Chocó, Sucre, Atlántico, Valle Del Cauca, Cesar, Tolima and Magdalena. with Infobae