[Anchor]

The damage from the earthquake that struck Colombia is growing. As casualties continue to mount, even morgues have been paralyzed, and surviving residents find themselves in a desperate situation. The Colombian government has declared a state of economic emergency.

Reporter Gwak Sang-eun has the details.

[Reporter]

Long lines have formed in front of the morgue.

These are bereaved families who lost loved ones in the earthquake that struck Colombia on the 10th.

[Morgue Official: Bodies will be handed over in order.]

With bodies flooding in suddenly, proper guidance is absent, and even the release of bodies is being delayed, leaving the families heartbroken.

[Alicia Arias / Bereaved Family Member: The refrigerators are broken and bodies are decomposing. Emergency measures must be put in place.]

The situation for the survivors is equally grim.

Children are left with nowhere to go in front of school buildings with completely collapsed roofs,

[German Membache Pena / School Teacher: Look at the damage. The auditorium has caved in.]

Families of the missing and volunteers are mobilizing buckets and handcarts to clear the debris, but it falls short.

[Herson Lozano / Family Member of Missing Person: We haven't found any signs of life from our family members yet, but we haven't given up hope.]

Amid the risk of additional collapses, residents are either setting off on the path of evacuation or struggling with recovery by clearing debris with their bare hands in houses left with only frameworks, but relief efforts have yet to reach them.

[Osmel Soto / Earthquake Victim: No one has visited us. Not even a single person has come to say, "We are doing this and that."]

Deep anxiety weighs heavily on the hearts of the displaced victims.

[Ebert Jonathan Morales / Earthquake Victim: We have nowhere to stay. We have lost everything. Everything.]

As the damage snowballed, the Colombian government declared a state of economic emergency.

Authorities report that the death toll stands at around 260, with injuries nearing 3,500.

However, with the number of missing persons tallied by private sectors reaching 4,000, which is eight times higher than the government's official count, the scale of casualties is expected to rise further.

[Video Editing: Jung Sunghoon]