Mud volcano erupts near homes in Colombia; evacuations underway

A mud volcano has erupted in northwest Colombia, and authorities have ordered precautionary evacuations nearby, according to officials. No injuries have been reported.

The eruption occurred Wednesday afternoon in San Juan de Urabá, a municipality in Antioquia department. Local officials said the mud volcano erupted near a municipal water treatment plant and close to homes.

Officials said there were no reported injuries. The only damage reported so far is to the road leading to the Siete Vueltas district. Authorities said nearby homes will be evacuated as a precaution.

Emergency officials are deploying a technical team to assess the site of the eruption.

Video shared on social media showed a large column of fire and thick smoke rising from a flat area, with flames shooting upward into the sky as smaller fires burned closer to the foreground.

Mud volcanoes are geological formations that erupt a mixture of mud, water and gases such as methane. Unlike magmatic volcanoes, they do not involve molten rock but can still produce dramatic eruptions and occasional fires when gases ignite.

Colombia is home to dozens of mud volcanoes, particularly along its Caribbean coast. The country also sits on the Pacific “Ring of Fire” and has several active magmatic volcanoes, though mud volcanoes are more common in low-lying coastal regions.