Afghanistan, Aug. 18 -- Colombia's President Abelardo De La Espriella said preliminary estimates put the economic damage from last week's 7.4-magnitude earthquake at about $9.58 billion, as the government begins assessing the scale of destruction and planning reconstruction.
Reuters reported on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, that De La Espriella said the estimated losses amount to about 30 trillion Colombian pesos, including roughly 24.5 trillion pesos in damage to buildings and 5.5 trillion pesos to infrastructure. He stressed that the figure remains preliminary and could change as authorities conduct further assessments.
The earthquake struck western Colombia on August 10, causing widespread damage in areas including Cali and Pereira. The la...