Flaming mud volcano eruption damages infrastructure and kills animals in San Juan de Urabá, Colombia
A mud volcano erupted in San Juan de Urabá, Antioquia Department, Colombia, on February 25, 2026, damaging a municipal facility and nearby roads. The eruption killed several animals and scorched vegetation before authorities established a security perimeter around the site.
Mud volcano eruption at San Juan de Uraba, Antioquia, Colombia on February 25, 2026. Credit: UNGRD
A mud volcano erupted near a municipal aqueduct treatment plant in the municipality of San Juan de Urabá on February 25, producing a tall column of flames, burning the dry vegetation, and causing large cracks to form on roads nearby.
The National Unit for Disaster Risk Management (UNGRD) reported that 3 homes had been evacuated due to the eruption. While no human losses or injuries were reported, UNGRD said several animals in the area were killed.
The eruption also damaged the nearby aqueduct treatment plant, along with the roads to Siete Vueltas and Juancito Viejo.
Fire brigades and police units extinguished residual fires and reported stabilization by the evening of February 25. Monitoring teams remained on-site to observe potential secondary vents or pressure build-up.
“Regarding the mud volcano eruption in San Juan de Urabá, confirmed by UNGRD, we clarify that mud volcanoes are structures different from magmatic volcanoes, and their eruptions are very small in comparison with the latter,” said the Colombian Geological Service (SGC).
Local authorities from the Departmental Administrative Unit for Disaster Risk Management of Antioquia (DAGRAN) established a security cordon around the affected area and restricted access to municipal roads until gas levels normalized.
SGC technicians collected samples of mud and gas for chemical analysis and will determine whether a deeper pressurized source exists beneath the site.
The eruption occurred in Colombia’s Gulf of Urabá basin, on the Caribbean coastal plain, where pressurized sedimentary layers and hydrocarbon-rich soils occasionally generate gas-driven mud eruptions.
The basin is known for previous gas seeps and mud expulsions near Arboletes and Necoclí. The eruptions form when pressurized fluids move upward through faulted marine sediments, releasing mud, brine, and gas. When methane concentrations are high, the gas can ignite on contact with oxygen or an external heat source.
According to the SGC, Colombia has more than 100 mud volcanoes and many smaller gas and mud vents across the departments of Atlántico, Córdoba, Sucre, Bolívar, and Antioquia. Because new vents appear frequently, maintaining monitoring systems for all of them is not feasible.
The eruption coincided with the region’s dry season, when low soil moisture and heat enhance methane release from shallow deposits.
I am an Assistant Editor and Severe Weather & Science Journalist at The Watchers, specializing in real-time severe weather coverage, geophysical event reporting, and research-driven scientific analysis. You can reach me at rishav(at)watchers(.)news.
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