Story By Marija Stojkoska /Newsflash
News Editor Ajda Ender /Newsflash
This is the moment a mud volcano erupts, sending thick streams of mud across the countryside and trapping cattle in the sludge.
Mud volcano erupts trapping animals in San Pedro de Uraba, Colombia, on the morning of Tuesday, August 11, 2026. Note: Photo is a screenshot from a video. (Newsflash/NX)
The eruption struck the rural Molinillo area of the municipality of San Pedro de Uraba, in Antioquia, Colombia, on the morning of 11th August.
Mud volcanoes are an unusual geological phenomenon in which pressure underground forces a mixture of mud, water and gases to the surface through cracks in the ground. Unlike conventional volcanoes, they do not erupt molten rock or lava.
Mud volcano erupts trapping animals in San Pedro de Uraba, Colombia, on the morning of Tuesday, August 11, 2026. Note: Photo is a screenshot from a video. (Newsflash/NX)
The volcano is located in the Santa Catalina area, around 40 minutes from the town centre, and the eruption triggered an emergency response as mud spread across the surrounding land.
Footage from the scene shows cattle struggling in the mud after being caught in the flow, while residents warn that approaching the animals is dangerous because the ground and sludge are still moving.
Mud volcano erupts trapping animals in San Pedro de Uraba, Colombia, on the morning of Tuesday, August 11, 2026. Note: Photo is a screenshot from a video. (Newsflash/NX)
One local resident can be heard saying: “Look, there is cattle trapped over there, there is a cow; the problem is that you cannot go in because look at how the mud is moving, it is carrying it towards the stream; there are two cows trapped.”
Emergency authorities said no people had been injured in the initial assessment, while reports indicated that livestock and farmland had been affected by the eruption.
Mud volcano erupts trapping animals in San Pedro de Uraba, Colombia, on the morning of Tuesday, August 11, 2026. Note: Photo is a screenshot from a video. (Newsflash/NX)
Families living near the volcano were evacuated as a precaution, while access to the affected area was restricted because of the risk posed by the unstable terrain and further activity.
Vanessa Paredes Zuniga, director of Antioquia’s risk-management department, said authorities were coordinating with officials in San Pedro de Urabá and nearby Turbo to strengthen monitoring of active mud structures.
Officials urged residents and visitors to stay away from the volcano, remain alert for further changes and follow instructions from emergency services.
The activity was also reported amid heightened concern in Colombia following the powerful earthquake that struck the country on 10th August, although authorities said the possible connection between the earthquake and the mud volcano remained under technical assessment.
The Administrative Department of Disaster Risk Management of Antioquia (DAGRAN) has established a 500 to 1,000-metre (1,640 to 3,280-metre) exclusion zone around the Molinillo mud volcano, with residents strictly warned to stay away because of unstable ground, ongoing gas emissions and the risk of further mudflows.
Mud volcanoes, also known as mud diapirs, form when clay-like material and gases under high pressure rise towards the surface through cracks in the ground.
San Pedro de Uraba has experienced dangerous mud-volcano activity before, with a major eruption in 1992 reportedly killing people and causing heavy losses of livestock and crops.
Emergency crews remained in the area assessing the extent of the damage and monitoring for further activity.
(Marija Stojkoska/Newsflash)
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