Armero tragedy
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The Armero tragedy occurred following the eruption of the Nevado del Ruiz stratovolcano in Tolima, Colombia, on November 13, 1985. The volcano's eruption after 69 years of dormancy caught nearby towns unprepared, even though volcanological organizations had warned the government to evacuate the area after they detected volcanic activity two months earlier.
Nevado del Ruiz seen from space. The summit ice cap and glaciers surround the dark Arenas crater.
The summit of Nevado del Ruiz in late November 1985
Armero was located in the center of this photograph, taken in late November 1985
Only a few buildings and structures remained standing after the mud and debris flows ravaged the town of Armero
Nevado del Ruiz
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Nevado del Ruiz, also known as La Mesa de Herveo is a volcano on the border of the departments of Caldas and Tolima in Colombia, about 129 km (80 mi) west of the capital city Bogotá. It is a stratovolcano composed of many layers of lava alternating with hardened volcanic ash and other pyroclastic rocks. Volcanic activity at Nevado del Ruiz began about two million years ago, during the Early Pleistocene or Late Pliocene, with three major eruptive periods. The current volcanic cone formed during the present eruptive period, which began 150,000 years ago.
The volcano's summit and upper flanks are covered by several glaciers that appear as a white mass surrounding the Arenas crater.
The top of the 11,000 year-old ash fall deposits interstratified with paleosols overlying a channelized debris flow and a sequence of wet surges
Armero was located in the center of this photograph, taken late November 1985.
Nevado del Ruiz as seen from Manizales, 2006