The powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake that struck Colombia on August 10 wasn't quite the disaster that we saw in Venezuela in June, but it remains a serious humanitarian disaster.
Around 300 people died, 4,000 were injured, and over 53,000 were impacted in some way.
Thankfully, the country's new president, Abelardo de la Espriella, had just taken over and delivered a swift response, flying to the hardest-hit regions immediately after. Many countries, like El Salvador, have sent aid, and the United States specifically has sent at least $26.5 million in emergency humanitarian assistance, deployed search and rescue teams, and provided C-130 airlift flights to help Colombia’s recovery, according to the State Department. Marco Rubio has stayed in close contact with de la Espriella.
There's also a lot of humanitarian effort going on between neighbors. One of our readers lives in Colombia and has kept me updated on some of what the people around him are doing, such as collecting food, clothing, and medicine for those who are without.
We've seen the faces of heroes emerge from this disaster, like the new president, Rubio, and Nayib Bukele. The singer Shakira has offered $1.25 million to help rebuild schools. Marc Anthony and several other performers put on a concert recently to raise money for earthquake victims in both Venezuela and Colombia.
But one guy you probably haven't heard of is Dr. Germán Andrés Somoyar.
On the morning of the earthquake, Somoyar, a pediatrician, was on duty in the Pediatrics Service unit at the Panamericana Clinic in Apartadó, Antioquia, Colombia. The moment he saw what was happening, he stepped into action.
"When the tremor suddenly started to be felt, we began evacuating the clinic. There were some mothers of patients — I found them in the rooms paralyzed by fear. At that moment the initiative was to encourage them to leave and follow the clinic’s evacuation route," he said in a recent interview.
But after that, he headed straight for the clinic's neonatal unit to help save the ones who could not save themselves.
"And then I went to the unit where we have the newborns, the neonatal unit, because there was clearly a greater need there. So between the whole team we were able to carry the babies in our arms and take them out through the evacuation zone from the sixth floor of the clinic," he said.
He also thanked God that all of the babies were okay in the end.
Pictures and videos of Somoyar standing outside holding two of the tiny infants have gone viral.
HÉROE EN EL URABÁ
— Capital Prensa (@capital_prensa) August 11, 2026
Un pediatra abraza y salva a recién nacidos durante la evacuación por el terremoto en Apartadó
APARTADÓ, Colombia.— En medio de la emergencia provocada por el potente sismo de magnitud 7,4 que sacudió a Colombia, una imagen de vocación y valentía conmocionó… pic.twitter.com/PlerISForC
While Somoyar has insisted that this was a group effort, the governor of Antioquia, Andrés Julián Rendón, has highlighted his efforts, but he got an even bigger reward from the Network of Spanish-Speaking Doctors in Germany (REMA). The group has offered him a comprehensive scholarship package covering credential validation, language and medical training, travel, and expenses to complete a subspecialty in pediatric cardiology in Germany.
This man risked his life to save his tiniest patients. It's a small but mighty story that sort of renewed my faith in humanity a little bit, and I thought I'd share some good news amid a tragedy as we head into the weekend.
