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Tragic last words of young girl who died after getting trapped in volcanic mudflow for 60 hours

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Updated 11:20 26 Feb 2025 GMTPublished 08:45 26 Feb 2025 GMT

Tragic last words of young girl who died after getting trapped in volcanic mudflow for 60 hours

Omayra Sánchez Garzón was one of many victims from a devastating volcanic eruption in Colombia

Brenna Cooper

Brenna Cooper

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Warning: This article contains content some readers may find upsetting.

Here are the heartbreaking final words of a teenage girl who endured 60 hours being trapped in volcanic mudflow for 60 hours before passing away.

On 13 November, 1985 Colombia would be shaken to its core after the Nevado del Ruiz volcano erupted, sending waves of volcanic mudflow cascading into the nearby town of Armero.

Around 20,000 out of the 29,000 residents of the town would perish in the tragedy, while Armero has since been abandoned.

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One of the people who would pass away in the tragedy was teenager Omayra Sánchez Garzón, who spent 60 hours trapped underneath volcanic mudflow, known as lahars.

Armero after the devastating eruption (HIRES/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)
Armero after the devastating eruption (HIRES/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

The 13-year-old was pinned down by the debris of her house, with rescuers unable to free her legs and spent the following three days doing their best to make the teenager comfortable in her final moments.

A tire was placed around the teenager to keep her afloat while locals brought Garzón sweets and soda to keep her spirits up. And for a while, she remained positive despite her heartbreaking circumstances.

But after three days trapped she would begin to feel the effects of her situation and began to hallucinate. Garzón would tell those around her that she could not be late to school as she had a maths exam, while as her hands turned white and her eyes became so bloodshot they appeared to turn black.

Onlookers filming the situation were able to capture her heartbreaking final words, with the teenager uttering: "Mommy, I love you so much, daddy I love you, brother I love you."

She would pass away on 16 November, with her cause of death believed to be either gangrene or hypothermia.

Divers would later discover that the teenager's legs were pinned underneath the roof with the arms of her deceased aunt holding onto them.

Frank Fournier's image would later win World Press Photo of the Year (Wikimedia Commons/Frank Fournier)
Frank Fournier's image would later win World Press Photo of the Year (Wikimedia Commons/Frank Fournier)

READ MORE:

MOVIE TELLS TRAGIC STORY BEHIND INFAMOUS IMAGE OF YOUNG GIRL

Garzón's story would become symbolic of the tragedy after Frank Fournier captured a photo during her final hours. The image would win World Press Photo of the Year winner in 1996.

Speaking about his decision to take the photo in an interview with the BBC, Fournier said: "When I took the pictures I felt totally powerless in front of this little girl, who was facing death with courage and dignity. She could sense that her life was going.

"I felt that the only thing I could do was to report properly on the courage and the suffering and the dignity of the little girl and hope that it would mobilise people to help the ones that had been rescued and had been saved. I felt I had to report what this little girl had to go through."

Featured Image Credit: (Wikimedia Commons)

Topics: History, Community, Environment

Brenna Cooper
Brenna Cooper

Brenna Cooper is a journalist at LADbible. She graduated from the University of Sheffield with a degree in History, followed by an NCTJ accredited masters in Journalism. She began her career as a freelance writer for Digital Spy, where she wrote about all things TV, film and showbiz. Her favourite topics to cover are music, travel and any bizarre pop culture.

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@_brencoco

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