A major earthquake has struck Colombia, damaging buildings in several parts of the country and leaving an unspecified number of people injured, international media outlets report. According to the BBC, the 7.4-magnitude tremor hit Chocó province at 07:34 local time (12:34 GMT) on Monday. The earthquake occurred at a depth of 103km (64 miles). Chocó Governor Nubia Carolina Córdoba said injuries had been reported, although she did not give a figure. She also warned that further tremors could follow. The epicentre was located about 5km east of San José del Palmar, with the shaking felt hundreds of kilometres away in Bogotá, the national capital. Several buildings in Bogotá were evacuated as a precaution. In Cali, the country's third-largest city by population, the mayor said at least 20 buildings had collapsed. The earthquake also affected air transport, with Colombia's aviation authority reporting damage at a number of regional airports, including those serving Pereira, Manizales, Quibdó, Armenia, Cartago and Buenaventura. In Bogotá, residents reported trees and traffic lights swaying violently as the ground shook. Large numbers of people left homes and workplaces, with some saying they felt the movement for nearly two minutes. Bogotá Mayor Carlos Fernando Galán said authorities had received reports of cracks in some buildings but had not identified any major damage to the city's infrastructure at the time. The earthquake comes less than two months after two powerful tremors struck northern Venezuela, killing more than 6,100 people.
