Hi there,

The media can be the greatest force for peace on Earth. Instead, all too often, it’s wielded as a weapon of war. That's why we have to take the media back. Thanks to a group of generous donors, all donations made today will be DOUBLED, which means your $15 gift is worth $30. With your contribution, we can continue to go to where the silence is, to bring you the voices of the silenced majority – those calling for peace in a time of war, demanding action on the climate catastrophe and advocating for racial and economic justice. Every dollar makes a difference. Thank you so much!

Democracy Now!
Amy Goodman

Non-commercial news needs your support.

We rely on contributions from you, our viewers and listeners to do our work. If you visit us daily or weekly or even just once a month, now is a great time to make your monthly contribution.

Please do your part today.

Donate

Death Toll Mounts After Colombia Earthquake

HeadlineJan 27, 1999

Officials now say the confirmed death toll from Monday’s earthquake in Colombia has reached 700 but could climb to as many as 2,000, as many bodies remain buried under rubble. Officials are desperate for refrigerated trucks and generators for hospitals to keep the bodies from decomposing. The Red Cross is asking for tents and tarps to shelter the homeless, estimated now in the hundreds of thousands. The magnitude-6.0 quake devastated cities and village across western Colombia, leveling buildings and homes. In the meantime, aid from the U.S. is poised to head south from Queens, New York, to Little Havana in Miami. Cardboard boxes are being left on sidewalks and in storefronts to collect donations. A team from the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue’s Urban Search and Rescue Task Force will help sift through the destruction. President Clinton telephoned Colombia’s president Tuesday to express his sympathy and condolences.

The original content of this program is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Please attribute legal copies of this work to democracynow.org. Some of the work(s) that this program incorporates, however, may be separately licensed. For further information or additional permissions, contact us.

Non-commercial news needs your support

We rely on contributions from our viewers and listeners to do our work.
Please do your part today.
Make a donation
Top