Volcano near Colombia prompts evacuation notice.

Authorities in Colombia on Saturday recommended evacuating towns closest to the notoriously roaring volcano, ahead of a possible eruption.

The Office of Disaster Risk Management said it is moving to evacuate communities within 15 kilometers (nine miles) of the main crater of three volcano Nevado del Ruiz in the Colombian Andes.

And increased seismic activity in the volcano, which killed 25 thousand people in a volcanic eruption in 1985.

This eruption was the worst natural disaster in the history of Colombia and one of the deadliest volcanic eruptions of the 20th century.

The Ministry of Mines said in a statement that there was a “significant increase in seismic activity” while the Colombian Geological Service SGC warned of a “possible eruption within days or weeks”.

This 5,300-meter (17,400-foot) giant in western Colombia is one of several volcanoes along the Ring of Fire, a path around the Pacific Ocean basin marked by active volcanoes and frequent earthquakes.

On November 13, 1985, it erupted and released so much heat that it melted the snow covering the mountain.

This created a stepped wall of mud that engulfed the town of Armero, killing half of its population of 50,000.

© 2023 AFP