Warning: This article contains content some readers may find upsetting
A tragic admission was made over the death of a girl whose final moments were captured in a haunting photo.
Colombian teen Omayra Sánchez was one of the 20,000 residents in the town of Armero who died when the Nevado del Ruiz volcano erupted in 1985.
A number of people survived the initial eruption but the 13-year-old was one of many who were caught in the mudslide or trapped in debris.
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And she ended up becoming the feature of one of the most infamous, heartbreaking images as her eyes eventually turned black before she died.
Frank Fournier is the photographer who took the image, feeling ‘totally powerless’ as she faced death ‘with courage and dignity’.
What happened to Omayra Sánchez?
When Fournier arrived in Armero, he met a farmer who took him to the young girl ‘who needed help’.
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The Frenchman explained that she was ‘trapped from the waist down by concrete and other debris from the collapsed houses’.
“Dawn was just breaking and the poor girl was in pain and very confused,” he explained to the BBC decades later. “She could sense that her life was going.”
Omayra was ‘drifting in and out of consciousness’, having been ‘in a large puddle’ for nearly three days.
And about three hours after Fournier got there, she sadly died.
Why Omayra couldn’t be saved
Multiple rescue efforts were made to get Omayra out but in reality, those who tried to save her could do little but comfort her.
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It was later reportedly discovered that her legs had been trapped by a brick door and her dead aunt’s arms under the water.
But unfortunately, rescuers still didn’t have the heavy equipment needed to be able to pull her out. A tyre was instead put around Omayra to keep her afloat while people brought her sweets and drinks.
Fournier said it was ‘impossible’ to rescue her, as he explained: “There was an outcry - debates on television on the nature of the photojournalist, how much he or she is a vulture.
“But I felt the story was important for me to report and I was happier that there was some reaction; it would have been worse if people had not cared about it. I am very clear about what I do and how I do it, and I try to do my job with as much honesty and integrity as possible.
“I believe the photo helped raise money from around the world in aid and helped highlight the irresponsibility and lack of courage of the country's leaders.
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“There was an obvious lack of leadership. There were no evacuation plans, yet scientists had foreseen the catastrophic extent of the volcano's eruption.”
Tragic admission following Omayra’s death
As highlighted, the authorities did face criticism for the handling of the tragedy, with a number of journalists claiming they did not see any of Colombia’s police force or army dispatched to join the rescue efforts.
Colombia’s minister of defence, General Miguel Vega Uribe, was the highest-ranking official in charge and argued that the government did all it could.
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“We are an underdeveloped country and don’t have that kind of equipment,” he said at the time, meaning that even if rescuers had located Omayra they wouldn’t have been able to save her.
He added that troops couldn’t be moved in the area ‘because of all the mud’.
Topics: World News
Jess Battison