Donate to the Colombia Earthquake Appeal

At 7.34am on Monday 10th August 2026, a powerful 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck in the Chocó region of western Colombia with its epicentre in San José del Palmar. This comes just a few weeks after a double earthquake hit neighbouring Venezuela.

The 7.4 magnitude tremor was strongly felt across much of Colombia and in some areas of nearby Ecuador and Panama.

The Colombian government has declared a state of disaster.

Reports from the region so far confirm the severity of the situation:

• Over 200 fatalities confirmed
• Thousands of people injured
• Extensive damage to homes and businesses
• Healthcare and educational facilities affected
• Water supply systems affected
• Mobile phone stations out of service due to power cuts and damage caused by the earthquake.

Oxfam Colombia has already begun consultations with partners and is gathering the information required to define and launch the response.

This is particularly important in the city of Buenaventura and parts of rural Chocó. Significant damage to infrastructure and limited connectivity that pre-date the earthquake in the region are making it harder to access affected areas, assess needs and deliver humanitarian aid.

Partners have been able to initiate emergency activities including the distribution of food assistance to affected communities. More will be required in the coming days.

As a result of the earthquake and damage to infrastructure there will likely be the need to support communities with water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), temporary shelter and community protection.

Oxfam has launched an appeal to support communities in the Chocó region hit by the earthquake on the morning of Monday 10th August.

Please donate what you can today.

Your support will help Oxfam and our colleagues in Colombia deliver clean water, food and critical supplies to the people of the affected area.

For every £1 you donate to this emergency appeal, we will allocate 9p of your donation to cover general support and running costs. There is a small chance that we will raise more money than is needed for this appeal. If this happens, we’ll spend any additional funds on other Oxfam projects – wherever the need is greatest.