15,000 on Slopes of Colombia Volcano Evacuated

The Nevado del Ruiz volcano spewed sulfuric ash Saturday for the first time since its catastrophic November eruption, prompting a dawn evacuation of about 15,000 farmers from six river valleys creasing its slopes, the government said.

Police used sirens to rouse the settlers, most of them peasant farmers, provided them with blankets and food and escorted them to higher ground. Victor Ricardo, president of the government’s National Emergency Committee, called it a “preventive measure” until the threat of a new eruption passes.

The shower of sulfuric vapor and ash started falling at 3 a.m., Ricardo told a nationwide radio and television audience. It was the same activity, he said, that signaled the Nov. 13 eruption.

That eruption melted part of the volcano’s cone of ice and snow, sending a wall of mud down the Lagunilla River. Mud and debris buried the town of Armero, about 105 miles northwest of the capital of Bogota, and partially destroyed 13 villages in the Armero Valley.

About 23,000 of Armero’s 28,000 residents were killed or missing. An additional 2,000 people perished in Chinchina, 22 miles west of the volcano.

Move Goes Smoothly

Police said Saturday’s organized evacuation, ordered by the emergency committee, began at 6 a.m. They reported initial panic in some settlements touched by the new-fallen ashes but said the operation went smoothly.

It was first reported that 30,000 people were being evacuated, but the number actually taken from the area was half that.

President Belisario Betancur flew to Manizales, a city six miles below the snow-capped Andean crater, to consult with 70 scientists who have kept vigil over the volcano since the November tragedy. Later, he flew over the 17,700-foot peak in a helicopter.

The evacuated zone covers low-lying rural areas of six towns along the Azufrado, Lagunilla, Recio, Guali, Sabandija and Chinchina rivers. All flow from the slopes of the volcano.

In addition to Chinchina, which was heavily damaged by the November eruption, the other towns affected were Villamaria, Mariquita, La Dorada, Honda and Ambalema. They lie in a 30-mile radius around Nevado del Ruiz and have a combined population of 150,000.

Ricardo said about 10% of the residents living in low-lying areas were evacuated. He said other communities have received orders to stock up on food, blankets and radios in case of more evacuations.