The photographer behind the iconic image of Omayra Sánchez Garzón, which captivated the world, has reflected on her lasting legacy more than 35 years after the disaster. Frank Fournier, now 76, was present during the catastrophic eruption of Colombia’s Nevado del Ruiz volcano, which obliterated the town of Armero and claimed nearly two-thirds of its 29,000 residents. The eruption triggered a deadly lahar, a fast-moving mudflow that buried much of the town.
Omayra, trapped beneath debris and volcanic mud after the landslide hit her home, endured a harrowing three days submerged in water. Despite repeated attempts to save her, it was impossible to free the 13-year-old, so rescuers focused on keeping her comfortable, placing a tire around her to help her stay afloat.
A crowd of journalists, photographers, TV crews, Red Cross workers, and officials gathered, hoping for a rescue that never came. Among them was Fournier, who took a haunting photo of Omayra, her exhausted eyes peering out from the water. The image spread around the world, and Fournier later praised her for confronting death with “dignity and courage.”
Fournier remembered Omayra hallucinating and asking to be taken to school, worried she would be late. This inspired the title of a section in a lecture he gave in 2022. At the sixth Xposure International Photography Festival, more than 35 years after her death, Fournier presented a segment titled “Please Take Me to School,” leaving the audience in silence.
He spoke about the Nevado del Ruiz disaster before turning to Omayra, the 13-year-old girl immortalized in the famous photograph. He said, “For three days and nights, trapped in sewage water at the foot of a hill, crushed by walls, the voice of an ordinary girl emerged, representing 28,000 people. Her dignity, courage, and kindness in such a painful moment resonated with millions.”
As the sewage water rose around her, Omayra, just 12 years old, faced a slow and agonizing death. Fournier reflected that her tragic fate, and the fate of many others, serves as a reminder of the need to value all human life equally. “We must question the inequality in how we value human lives—whether based on social or cultural status,” he said.
Fournier emphasized that recognizing every individual’s right to life is not only a practical matter but an ethical and political necessity for the good of all. He shared other striking images of the disaster, explaining that the lahar took only 45 minutes to decimate Armero. But Omayra’s photo, which won the 1985 World Press Photo award, remains his most powerful image to this day.