The Albany Gazette - Homeless, jobless: Colombia quake survivors 'left with nothing'

The little boy adds a bright rainbow, a shining sun and a tall tree to his illustration, while other displaced children paint alongside him at a shelter in Pereira.

Much of the city was devastated by Monday's 7.4-magnitude earthquake, which killed at least 281 people and injured thousands more across the affected area.

Sebastian gifted the painting to his father, Alexander Fernandez.

"He's always thinking about the house. He keeps saying I should take him to see it," said the 27-year-old whose workplace, a carwash, also fell to pieces in the temblor.

The Fernandez family survived the disaster by taking cover under a bed.

"We were left with nothing," the father told AFP.

Days after the strongest quake to hit Colombia this century, destitute families continue to pour into Pereira's makeshift camps.

Other children at the shelter kick a ball around while their parents make use of food donations to cobble together meals for their little ones.

- 'I have to start over' -

"Right now I'm traumatized. I've never been through anything like this before," said Fernandez, adding that he is going to "wait and see... if we can put the house back together again."

Pereira's worst affected neighborhoods were also its most impoverished, with homeless people, Venezuelan migrants and street vendors in precarious situations bearing the brunt of the impact.

Jani Caicedo reached Pereira after wandering through several cities, having been forced to flee the port of Buenaventura due to the destabilizing presence of armed groups.

"First I was chased out from one place, and now I'm being chased by nature -- it's very hard," the 45-year-old told AFP at the shelter.

Caicedo eked out a living by selling peanuts and other products on the street, earning just enough to pay for a room that cost around $4.50 a day.

But the earthquake sent that building crashing down.

"I have to start over," he said mournfully.

The government has declared an "economic emergency" but has not yet published estimates of how much rebuilding the quake zone will cost.

Colombia's third-largest city Cali also suffered heavy damage.

- 'My heart is broken' -

In Pereira, home to half a million people, every single street bears proof of what happened.

Mountains of debris are a common sight, and issues with the power grid make blackouts a regular occurrence.

Only five months ago, Daniel Flores achieved a lifelong dream by opening a bike workshop. At night it doubled as his bedroom.

All that is left now is his motorbike, one red bicycle and an assortment of tools.

"My heart is broken," the 33-year-old told AFP. "It's something I wouldn't wish on anyone."

"In a single second I practically lost everything -- my dreams, everything."

Now Flores and his German Shepherd, Mike, are on the streets.

The pair hope the third member of their family, a three-month-old puppy Luna, will reappear after going missing during the quake.

(W.Walker--TAG)