What happened
At 7:34 a.m. local time on Monday, August 10, 2026, a magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck western Colombia. The Servicio Geológico Colombiano, Colombia’s national geological survey, placed the epicenter near San José del Palmar, in the department of Chocó, at a depth of approximately 103 kilometers. Colombia declared a national disaster.
Official toll — Unidad Nacional para la Gestión del Riesgo de Desastres (UNGRD), Colombia’s national disaster management agency. Official consolidated figures as of August 16, 2026, 6:30 p.m. local time.
287 people dead · 4,147 injured · 194 missing
15 departments and 472 municipalities affected · 120,671 families, 185,996 people
These figures provide a dated official snapshot of the scale of the disaster. They are provisional and may be revised as local reports are verified.
Why this appeal exists
Colombians are already responding. In affected towns and cities, businesses, restaurants, volunteers and community organizations have mobilized to help people facing loss and displacement. This appeal is intended to complement that effort by helping international attention reach communities whose geography and pre-existing vulnerability make relief and recovery especially difficult.
Flor Naciente brings together professionals and accumulated experience from its founding member, Corporación Escuela Galán, whose work with vulnerable communities in Colombia spans more than two decades. That experience informs our concern for remote rural and ethnic communities and for families already affected by displacement.
Recovery will continue long after the initial emergency phase and public attention begin to decline. We are asking that international attention remain with these communities through that longer process.
Who we are, and what our role is here
Corporación Flor Naciente is a Colombian nonprofit organization working with vulnerable populations. It brings together professionals and experience originating in Corporación Escuela Galán and continues to carry out projects with members of those teams. In this initiative our role is solely to raise awareness and help mobilize assistance for people affected by the earthquake.
We are not a relief agency and we do not present ourselves as one. We do not represent the Colombian government, we do not coordinate the emergency response, and we hold no formal relationship with any of the organizations listed below. We are using our institutional voice to call attention to the emergency and to independent humanitarian organizations responding to it.
Corporación Flor Naciente · NIT 901.840.704-9, the Colombian tax identification number · registered with the Cámara de Comercio de Bogotá.
How you can help
Share what is reliable. If you have an audience, using it can be one of the most valuable ways to help. Accurate information, directed toward organizations that can act, can help mobilize resources quickly.
Give directly to an independent humanitarian organization. On its own website. Nothing needs to pass through us, and nothing will.
Offer what your organization actually has. Institutional, logistical, medical, food, housing, educational or reconstruction capacity, deployed through an implementing organization you select and through your own established procedures.
Independent humanitarian channels
The organizations below have published information indicating that they are responding to this earthquake. Corporación Flor Naciente is not affiliated with, does not represent and is not authorized by any of the organizations listed below. Their inclusion does not constitute a partnership, certification, endorsement or guarantee. Flor Naciente receives no commission, fee or other benefit from any of them. Donors should do their own due diligence and may use any humanitarian channel they prefer. Reviewed against publicly available information on August 18, 2026; each organization’s own website is the current authority on how it uses funds.
Direct Relief — directrelief.org/emergency/colombia-earthquake-2026
States that it is delivering requested medical supplies and emergency funding to Colombian responders. Direct Relief states that 100% of donations to its Colombia Earthquake Response Fund are dedicated to Colombia earthquake response efforts.
World Central Kitchen (WCK) — wck.org/relief/colombia-earthquake-2026
States that it mobilized within hours of the earthquake and is serving meals in Colombia with local partners.
All Hands & Hearts — allhandsandhearts.org/our-work/programs/colombia-earthquake-relief
States that it mobilized to Pereira within hours of the earthquake and runs a campaign specific to Colombia. It does not publish whether contributions are exclusively restricted to Colombia, or how unused funds are handled; we could not confirm this either way.
GlobalGiving — Colombia Earthquake Relief Fund — globalgiving.org/projects/colombia-earthquake-relief-fund
States that the fund channels support through local organizations in the affected regions, first for urgent relief and then for reconstruction.
CARE — care.org/news-and-stories/colombia-earthquake-2026
States that it has deployed emergency teams in Valle del Cauca and Risaralda and is coordinating with local women's organizations in Chocó.
Colombian Red Cross Society (Cruz Roja Colombiana) — through the IFRC Emergency Appeal — ifrc.org/emergency/colombia-earthquake-2026
The Colombian Red Cross reports that its teams are carrying out search and rescue, health services, psychosocial support, restoration of family links, telecommunications support and emergency assistance in affected areas. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) launched a CHF 25 million emergency appeal, dated August 12, 2026, to support and expand the Colombian Red Cross response. Donations made through this appeal go to the IFRC, which channels resources to the Colombian Red Cross and is responsible for reporting on their use. The IFRC's own donation platform accepts international credit cards, Apple Pay and PayPal, including from donors based in the United States. No U.S. tax deductibility is claimed or implied; donors should confirm their own tax treatment independently.
How each organization applies funds is set by that organization. We cannot promise that a given contribution reaches a given community, and we do not make that claim.
Sources
Earthquake parameters: Servicio Geológico Colombiano.
Casualty and damage figures: Unidad Nacional para la Gestión del Riesgo de Desastres (UNGRD), consolidated balance as of August 16, 2026, 6:30 p.m. local time (UNGRD official account; corroborated by El Tiempo).
Last updated: August 18, 2026.
Contact
Alonso Castellanos
Executive Director, Corporación Flor Naciente
Bogotá, Colombia
I am available to speak directly with any foundation officer, adviser, journalist or organization that wants to verify this appeal or discuss it.
Notice
Corporación Flor Naciente has not authorized any person or organization to collect earthquake donations on its behalf. If you are contacted by someone claiming to do so, they are not acting for this organization.
Flor Naciente receives no commission, fee, consideration or other benefit from any organization linked on this page.