ACTIVITY Nº5
22.03.2013 19:54
Armero tragedy:
The Armero tragedy was the result of a natural disaster the eruption of Nevado del Ruiz on Wednesday November 13, 1985 in the department of Tolima, Colombia. After sixty-nine years of inactivity, the eruption was a surprise to the nearby villages, although the government had received warnings from multiple volcanological organizations since the appearance of the first signs of volcanic activity in September 1985.
Pyroclastic flows emitted from the crater of the volcano melted about 10% of mountain glacier, sending four lahars, mudflows, earth and rubble products of volcanic activity, which descended the slopes of Nevado at 60 km / h. Lahars increased their speed in gullies and headed for the six major rivers at the base of the volcano. The town of Armero, located just under 50 miles from the volcano, was beaten by these lahars, killing more than 20,000 of its 29,000 inhabitants. The victims in other nations, particularly in the town of Chinchiná, the death toll rose to 23,000. Around the World published video footage and photographs of Omayra Sánchez, a teenage victim of the tragedy, which was trapped for three days until he died. Other photographs of the impact of the disaster to the attention of public opinion and started a controversy about the degree of responsibility of the Colombian government in the disaster.