Alagoas woman who lives with family in Colombia reports despair during earthquake: 'It was an eternity'

Alagoana reports despair during earthquake in Colombia Three days ago, Colombia continued with rescue work and searches for the missing after the country was hit by a 7.4 magnitude earthquake, last Monday (10). Journalist and researcher from Alagoas Flávia Lima Motta has lived in the country for nine years and said that the few minutes the tremor lasted "was an eternity". "I despaired, because it took a long time. These tremors last a short time, in theory, between 40 seconds and a minute. But this one took a long time, lasting between three and five minutes", recalled the woman from Alagoas. ?Join the g1 Alagoas channel On the third day, local authorities had already recorded more than 230 deaths, hundreds of injuries and around three thousand missing. The city of Cali is among the hardest hit places, with 74 deaths. This was the most severe tremor recorded in the last decade. Flávia lives with her husband and two children, aged 4 years and 10 months, in Bogotá. The apartment where they live is about 50 kilometers from the epicenter of the earthquake, which occurred in San José del Palmar. Journalist Flávia Lima Motta lives in Colombia with her husband and children Personal Archive "I live in an apartment on the third floor of a seven-story building. We were getting ready to start the day. I was finishing preparing my children's breakfast when we felt the tremors. We ran out", recalled Flávia Lima Motta. READ ALSO: 7.4 magnitude earthquake hits Colombia, collapses buildings and kills 132; there are people under rubble Woman is rescued under rubble 36 hours after earthquake in Colombia; VIDEO Earthquake in Colombia: search for survivors enters 3rd day; death toll is revised to 233 The journalist said that, minutes before the earthquake, alerts began to be sent to cell phones, and sirens began to sound to warn people about the risk and guide them to look for safe places, the so-called “safe spots”. "We went to a park around the corner from our house and waited. There, we could see the toys and people shaking, trying to balance themselves due to the tremors. I was desperate, with my youngest son on my lap, watching the buildings to see if the tremors would subside", said Flávia. After the initial scare, the woman from Alagoas says that the time is now for reconstruction and that it is impossible not to be touched by what is happening. "I already have my life crossed by Colombia for everything. For my family, my children who were born here, my work. It is inevitable not to be shaken by everything that is happening, because we have family and friends. It is impossible not to connect with the country", concluded the journalist. Rescuers rescue a woman under the rubble of a building in Pereira, Colombia, on August 11, 2026. The rescue took place 36 hours after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake that hit the country. David Salazar/AFP