Armero‘s Echo: Survivors Recall ‘Everything Was Erased’ as volcanic Threat Remains 40 Years Later
ARMERO, COLOMBIA – Forty years after the Nevado del ruizโฃ volcano unleashed a catastrophic lahar that buried the Colombian โtown of Armero, survivors are sharing harrowing memories of โaโ night “everything โฃwas erased,” while โexperts warn thatโฃ similar communities โremain vulnerable toโ volcanic disaster. The November 13, 1985, tragedy claimed โฃanโ estimated 25,000 lives, becoming one of theโข deadliest volcanic โคevents in recorded history.
Diana Jimรฉnez watched the unfolding devastation from her aunt’s house in โคGuayabal, struggling to comprehend โฃthe scale ofโ theโฃ loss – the disappearanceโ of friends โand โa โway of life.โฃ Gerardo Criales witnessed the obliteration firsthand, emergingโ from โhis rooftop to find Armero vanished. “Armero is an unresolved โgrief and a longing forโ a land like no othre,” says โขgeologist โฃGloria Patricia Cortรฉs,reflecting the enduring pain felt โขacross Colombia.
The Armero tragedy โคspurred significant advancements in volcanological monitoring and risk management. In the wake of the disaster, the Colombian Geological Service (SGC) spearheaded years of research, becoming a pioneer in volcano observation. The event also lead โtoโข the formation of VDAP, the Volcanic Disaster Assistance โฃProgram, and fostered ongoing collaboration with the United States โGeological Survey. This scientific progress, born from immense loss, aims to preventโข similar catastrophes globally.
Despite these advancements,the threat persists. Towns โlike Honda, located approximatelyโค 50 kmโข from Armero,โ face potential devastation from future lahars flowing down the Gualรญ River. “You have toโข seeโฃ and understand the signs,” emphasizes โCriales, now โขa member ofโ the Armero Vive memory and readiness working group. Jimรฉnez echoes this sentiment, stating,โข “We cannot continue making the same โคmistakes.” โ
Geologists are working to ensure โwarnings issued byโค the SGC โare heeded, โpreventing another “grayโ spot of death.” Cortรฉs affirms, “We do not wont it to be repeated either in Colombia or anywhere in the world.” โthe lessons of Armero, etched in the memoriesโข ofโ survivors and the dedication of scientists, serve as a critical reminder: proactive prevention, informed by scientific understanding, is the only path to safeguarding communities living in the shadow of volcanoes.