What damage did Nevado del Ruiz cause?
Within four hours of the eruption, the lahars traveled over 60 miles, killing more than 23,000 people, injuring over 5,000, and destroying more than 5,000 homes.
What volcanic disaster occurred at Nevado del Ruiz?
stratovolcano
The Colombian volcano Nevado del Ruiz is an active stratovolcano with a history of generating deadly volcanic mudflows (lahars) from relatively small-volume eruptions. In 1595, a lahar swept down the valleys of the River Guali and the River Lagunillas, killing 636 people.
How did the eruption of Nevado del Ruiz result in the deaths of 22000 people?
All-told, these mudflows, called lahars, killed more than 23,000 people. Although it wasn’t considered a large eruption, heat melted snow and ice from a glacier capping the volcano and unleashed three lahars — a mixture of rock, volcanic debris, mud and water.
How did Nevado del Ruiz affect the economy?
The International Disaster Database lists the most expensive volcanic eruption as Nevado Del Ruiz in Colombia, which killed around 20,000 people when a mudslide hit the nearby town of Armero. The economic impact of the eruption is estimated at 1 billion dollars.
Why were there more casualties due to the Nevado del Ruiz lahars?
The eruption caused lahars, which traveled down the valleys of the nearby Gualí and Lagunillas rivers, clogging up the water, killing fish and destroying vegetation. More than 600 people died as a result of the lahar. The 1595 eruption was the last major eruption of Nevado del Ruiz before 1985.
Why is lahar hazardous?
Large lahars can crush, abrade, bury, or carry away almost anything in their paths. By destroying bridges and roads, lahars can also trap people in areas vulnerable to other hazardous volcanic activity, especially if the lahars leave fresh deposits that are too deep, too soft, or too hot to cross.
How far do lahars travel?
On steep slopes, lahar speeds can exceed 200 kilometres per hour (120 mph). With the potential to flow distances of more than 300 kilometres (190 mi), a lahar can cause catastrophic destruction in its path.
What happened in the Nevado del Ruiz?
Nevado del Ruiz volcano in central Colombia, 130 km WNW of Bogota, is a broad, glacier covered volcano. A relatively small eruption in 1985 caused a devastating mud flow that killed almost 25,000 people in the town of Armero, marking one of the worst volcanic disasters in history.
What damage can a lahar cause?
Lahars and excess sediment cause serious economic and environmental damage to river valleys and flood plains. Large lahars can crush, abrade, bury, or carry away almost anything in their paths. Buildings and valuable land may be partially or completely buried.
How many people were killed by the Nevado del Ruiz lahars?
Some survivors later reported that the first waves were formed by cold mud, followed by waves of hot mud. Nearly 22.000 people were killed by these mudflows that coming from the summit of the volcano followed the river valley of Lagunillas until reaching Armero. Video 1.
Where was the eruption of Nevado del Ruiz in 1985?
The 1985 eruption of Nevado del Ruiz in Colombia unleashed deadly lahars that swept through Armero, killing 20,000 people in that town alone. Credit: U.S. Geological Survey.
How many people died during the Ruiz eruption?
In recorded history, Ruiz had two notable eruptive events. In 1595, three Plinian eruptions killed 636 people when a lahar swept down the nearby river valleys. In 1845, 250 years later, mudflows again flooded the upper valley of the Lagunillas River, killing more than 1,000 people.
How tall was the summit of Nevado del Ruiz?
The summit crater of Nevado del Ruiz in late November 1985. Credit: U.S. Geological Survey. Nevado del Ruiz is a large stratovolcano, similar to Washington’s Mount St. Helens and Mount Rainier, reaching more than 5,300 meters above sea level and topped by glaciers.