Omayra Sánchez was a 13-year-old Colombian girl trapped by a landslide in Armero when the Nevado del Ruiz volcano erupted in November 1985. Volcanic debris mixed with melting ice formed lahars, fast mudflows that tore down river valleys and killed about 25,000 people and destroyed Armero and 13 other villages. Sánchez was pinned beneath the debris of her house, standing in water for three days. Rescuers could not safely amputate her legs, and after 60 hours she died, probably from gangrene or hypothermia. Her ordeal was documented by journalists, and a photograph taken by Frank Fournier was published worldwide and named World Press Photo of the Year for 1986.

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.