More than a hundred dead in Colombia earthquake

A major earthquake in Colombia has killed more than a hundred people, the BBC and the Independent report. The Independent describes a trail of destruction and quotes an expert saying they have studied Colombia for years to explain why the tremor was so destructive.

Colombia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a horseshoe of seismic activity encircling the Pacific Ocean where about ninety percent of the world's earthquakes occur. The country lies at the meeting point of three tectonic plates - the Nazca, the South American and the Caribbean - making it one of the most earthquake-prone regions on Earth. The last comparably deadly quake in the country's modern history occurred decades ago; the interval between such events shapes how well a society is prepared for them.

Rescue efforts are ongoing. The death toll from earthquakes typically rises in the hours and days after the initial tremor as collapsed buildings are searched and remote areas report in. The speed of the rescue operation and the structural resilience of the affected buildings will determine the final count.

What to watch: updated casualty figures as rescue teams reach outlying areas, and any assessment of building standards in the affected zone. The gap between the last major quake and this one will also shape the political reckoning - whether preparedness was adequate, and whether the interval allowed standards to slip.