Armero, the aftermath.

The Armero tragedy (or Tragedia de Armero in Spanish) was the aftermath of the November 13, 1985 Nevado del Ruiz Volcano eruption in Tolima, Colombia. The eruption of lava melted the large ice caps and produced floods, mudslides and a series of lahars that ultimately covered the town of Armero and killed most of its population, some 21,000 people out of 23,000 inhabitants ^[1]. Armero was the second largest town in the Tolima Department after the Department capital, Ibagué. The volcano had been dormant for almost 150 years when people began hearing rumbling from the volcano in 1985. Image File history File links Information_icon. ... November 13 is the 317th day of the year (318th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 48 days remaining. ... 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Space radar image of Nevado del Ruiz Nevado del Ruiz 2006 Nevado del Ruiz is a volcano in Caldas Department, Colombia. ... Motto: Capital Ibagué Governor Area 23,562 km² Population  - Total (2003)  - Density   1,312,972 204 people/km² Adjective tolimense Tolima is a department of Colombia. ... Look up lava, Aa, pahoehoe in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... An ice cap is a dome-shaped ice mass that covers less than 50,000 km² of land area (usually covering a highland area). ... Picture of flooding in Amphoe Sena, Ayutthaya Province, Thailand For other uses, see Flood (disambiguation). ... Mudslide in La Conchita, California A mudslide is a landslide of mud. ... Lahar from a March 1982 eruption of Mount St. ... Motto: Capital Ibagué Governor Area 23,562 km² Population  - Total (2003)  - Density   1,312,972 204 people/km² Adjective tolimense Tolima is a department of Colombia. ... Ibagué (1985 pop. ... 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Geologists and other experts had warned authorities and media outlets about the danger up to several weeks and days earlier. When interviewed by reporters, a number of different officials told the inhabitants that the city was safe and downplayed the possible effects of the natural phenomenon. The mayor of Armero himself, a night before the explosion assured citizens that there was nothing to fear.

1985 Destruction

On the night of November 13, 1985 Nevado del Ruiz erupted, spewing volcanic ash and causing lahars 60 meters thick. the lava type was a'a. Only one quarter of the population of Armero survived the lahar. The city was buried in ash and mud, and remains buried to this day, much like the city of Pompeii. Footage and photos of Omayra Sánchez, a young victim of the tragedy, were published around the world. November 13 is the 317th day of the year (318th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 48 days remaining. ... 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Pompeii is a ruined Roman city near modern Naples in the Italian region of Campania, in the territory of the comune of Pompei. ... Omayra Sanchez trapped in the Armero tragedy. ...

The explosion of the volcano was not the main cause of the disappearance of Armero. The Lagunilla river had been blocked for more than 2 months, when considerably smaller eruptions of the Arenas volcano had melted part of the Ruiz mountain. As a result, the Lagunilla ended up looking more like a lake than a river.

The Nevado del Ruiz Volcano eruption swept away Armero.

The night when the volcano exploded, a gigantic ice rock from the top of the mountain fell into the Lagunilla river, creating a huge wave of mud, ash and water. It is estimated that the wave was traveling at 300 miles per hour as it hit Armero. Traveling through the narrow Lagunilla river, it gained speed and power as it hit the plains of the city of Armero. It took less than 15 minutes from the time of the eruption, to the time when the city was gone. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (981x632, 46 KB) Nevado del Ruiz, Colombia Steam eruption in September 1985 prior to the major eruption on November 13, 1985 Original source URL: National Geophysical Data Center, URL: http://www. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (981x632, 46 KB) Nevado del Ruiz, Colombia Steam eruption in September 1985 prior to the major eruption on November 13, 1985 Original source URL: National Geophysical Data Center, URL: http://www. ...

Gigantic rocks embedded in the bottom of the Lagunilla river were moved from their prehistoric positions and started travelling along with the wave, helping to destroy everything in its path. After the first few hours, a lesser secondary wave caused further damage. The next morning, a plane transmitting to Colombia's Civil Defense system, overflying what was supposed to be Armero, is known to have remarked: "My God, Armero has been erased from the map", "Dios mio, Armero ha sido borrada del mapa".

Map of the disaster area provided by the USGS.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) is a scientific agency of the United States government. ...

See also

• Pompeii a similar fate.

Pompeii is a ruined Roman city near modern Naples in the Italian region of Campania, in the territory of the comune of Pompei. ...

Notes

External links

• Information about Armero

Coordinates: 5°02′N, 74°53′W Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...