World Map › South America › Colombia
Country
Map of Colombia
South America · Bogotá
Colombia spans the North Andes and South American plates. It has 13 volcanoes active over the last 10,000 years, 7 of which have erupted since 1900. Since 1900, 57 major earthquakes have been recorded, causing at least 4,480 deaths. Its exposure to natural hazards is 6.5 out of 10 (INFORM index), a very high level. Its overall risk index, which accounts for its ability to cope, is 5.3 out of 10.
- Capital
- Bogotá
- Population
- 52,321,152
- Area
- 1,141,748 km²
- Continent
- South America
Tectonic Plates
Natural Hazards
Exposure to natural hazards according to the European Commission's INFORM index, from 0 (very low) to 10 (very high), overall and for each type of hazard.
Overall Risk Index
This overall score combines hazard exposure with the vulnerability of the population (6.3 out of 10) and the lack of coping capacity (3.0 out of 10). A highly exposed but well-prepared country therefore gets a low overall score.
People Exposed Each Year
- 102,853to strong shaking (intensity VI and above)
- 40,526to destructive shaking (intensity VIII and above)
- 768to tsunamis
- 34,662to hurricane-force winds (category 1 and above)
- 268,838to river floods
- 32,988to coastal floods
Overall Risk Index Over Time
Hazard Levels
Hazard level assessed by ThinkHazard! (World Bank, GFDRR), meaning the likelihood of a damaging event, from very low to high.
- River FloodHigh
- Urban FloodHigh
- Coastal FloodHigh
- EarthquakeHigh
- LandslideHigh
- TsunamiHigh
- VolcanoHigh
- CycloneHigh
- Extreme HeatHigh
- WildfireHigh
- Water ScarcityLow
Volcanoes (13)
Volcanoes active over the last 10,000 years; year of the last known eruption.
- Nevado del Ruiz 2026
- Puracé 2026
- Galeras 2014
- Nevado del Huila 2012
- Nevado del Tolima 1943
- Cumbal 1926
- Doña Juana 1906
- Cerro Bravo 1720
- Machin 1180
- Santa Isabel 850 BCE
- Volcán Azufral 930 BCE
- Romeral 5,390 BCE
- Sotará ?
Major Earthquakes Since 1900
Earthquakes that caused deaths or significant damage, or of magnitude 7.5 and above (NOAA).
Deadliest
- 1999Armenia, Calarca, Pereira · M 6.21,185 deaths
- 1994Cauca, Huila · M 6.8650 deaths
- 1979Off Shore, Pacific Ocean · M 8.1600 deaths
- 1983Sw, Popayan · M 4.9350 deaths
- 2026Choco · M 7.4335 deaths
- 1923Ipiales · M 6.2300 deaths
Regions
Regions with volcanoes, major earthquakes, tsunamis, cyclones or famous faults.
Tsunamis
10 major tsunamis have reached Colombia since 1900, killing 645 people in the country. The deadliest and highest are listed below.
- 1906Tsunami (Ecuador) · 5.0 m609 deaths
- 1979Tsunami (Colombia) · 6.0 m36 deaths
- 2017Tsunami (Colombia) · 8.0 m
- 2011Tsunami (Japan) · 0.3 m
- 1964Tsunami (United States of America) · 0.2 m
- 2025Tsunami (Russia) · 0.2 m
- 2010Tsunami (Chile) · 0.1 m
- 1960Tsunami (Chile)
Tropical Cyclones
4 major tropical cyclones have made landfall in Colombia since 1950. The deadliest and most powerful are listed below.
- 1988Hurricane Joan:miriam · 111 km/h
- 1993Tropical Storm Bret · 74 km/h
- 2022Hurricane Bonnie · 65 km/h
- 2022Hurricane Julia · 57 km/h
Sources : Natural Earth · Wikidata · INFORM Risk Index (1 September 2026 v 0.7.3), Commission européenne, CC BY 4.0 · NOAA NCEI · ThinkHazard!, GFDRR, CC BY · Bird (2003), PB2002 · Global Volcanism Program, Smithsonian Institution