A powerful explosion against a power tower in the neighborhood known as Loma del Indio, in Medellin, created moments of panic among the residents of this area of the city last night.
Although those responsible for the criminal act have not yet been identified, some sources claim that a flag of the FARC dissidents appeared at the site, leading one line of investigation to point to their possible involvement.
The attack, which caused no casualties, produced a loud blast at night and, although it is far from the crime, mortality, and bomb attack rates of the city’s worst times, for some neighbors the fear revives ghosts of a past once thought to be overcome.
Explosion attack in Medellin, Colombia, revives ghosts from the past
On the night of Wednesday, Sept. 10, a powerful explosion in the sector known as Loma del Indio, a residential area in the south of Medellin, caused moments of panic among some residents.
An attack on a power tower in the area, which left no victims, prompted the police to be deployed to the site to respond to the emergency and ensure security in the area. In addition, a helicopter flew over the zone to support verification and patrol efforts.
According to reports posted by citizens on digital platforms, the blast was felt in neighborhoods such as Belen, Laureles, El Poblado, and some parts of Envigado, already outside the city. Some houses reported window damage, with broken glass and other minor impacts, such as a brief power outage on some streets.
Although the perpetrators of this criminal act are officially unknown, the mayor of Medellin, Federico Gutierrez, stated that a flag alluding to the 36th Front of the FARC dissidents, led by alias “Calarca,” was found in the area, and he is preliminarily pointed to as responsible for the attack.
Sube Polcia en este momento pic.twitter.com/0CirK5QJZ1
— REY 🔱 (@DnlRey) September 11, 2025
Possible reaction to police operations against this criminal group
Mayor Gutierrez also pointed out that this terrorist act would be a response from the criminal group led by alias “Calarca” to the police operations that, earlier this week, managed to take down Jorge Ivan Salazar, alias “Guillermino,” an explosives expert directly linked to the attack on a helicopter in the region, an action that caused the death of 13 police officers.
“Last night, the police arrived at the Loreto road in the Asomadera sector to verify the presence of a flag alluding to the 36th Front of the FARC [dissident group]. In the area there were explosions, and it was confirmed that one of the EPM [Medellin electricity company] power towers had been damaged. Army personnel and bomb squad officers are currently on site,” wrote the mayor of Medellin on his X account.
Gutierrez added: “This terrorist act is in response to the blow and takedown that today the National Police dealt to this structure in Campamento (Antioquia),” referring to the police killing of the criminal group’s explosives expert.
In a second comment, the mayor offered a reward on behalf of the local administration of up to 200 million pesos (approximately US$50,000) “to anyone who provides information on the material and intellectual perpetrators of the attack on the power tower today.”
Related: FARC Dissident Factory Uncovered in Medellin After Explosion Attack
🚨🚨🚨A todos los terroristas les vamos a seguir poniendo precio. Caen porque caen. Ofrecemos hasta $200 millones de pesos para quien nos dé información de los responsables materiales e intelectuales de la afectación contra la torre de energía el día de hoy.
Colombia 🇨🇴 debe… pic.twitter.com/vR8MjDpDni— Fico Gutiérrez (@FicoGutierrez) September 11, 2025
Violence in Medellin, between fear and the ghosts of a still-distant past
During the 1980s and 1990s, Medellin became the epicenter of drug-related violence. The cartel led by Pablo Escobar unleashed an open war against the state and civil society, transforming the city into a permanent stage of fear.
Attacks marked daily life. In 1988, a bomb at the Monaco building, the residence of the Escobar family, shook the El Poblado district. From then on, car bombs multiplied: in shopping centers, police stations, and busy streets, leaving dozens dead and injured. In 1995, San Antonio Park became the scene of an explosion that killed 23 people and injured more than 200.
Contract killing also became part of the urban landscape. Young men from working-class neighborhoods were recruited as hitmen, carrying out murders in broad daylight on buses, street corners, and avenues. Violence reached judges, police officers, teachers, and journalists — all turned into targets of a criminal structure determined to crush any resistance.
Those years left deep scars. Medellin became synonymous with terror, and although the city has made great strides in processes of social transformation, the memory of those days remains alive in its streets and its people. Perhaps because of this closeness, the resurgence of violence today revives the ghosts of a dark past that, for now and fortunately, still remains far from the reality of violence in Colombia’s second-largest city.
The numbers speak for themselves: in the early 1990s, Medellin recorded more than 6,000 homicides annually. In 1991, the rate exceeded 380 murders per 100,000 inhabitants, the highest ever recorded in the city. In contrast, in 2024 the number of murders was 310 — lower than the peaks of three decades ago.
Although the uptick in violence and this action/reaction policy, driven by the strengthening of criminal groups, is evident, the figures show that the city is still far from that grim era. Nevertheless, the state will need to reformulate its security strategy and its approach toward drug-trafficking groups to ensure that the ghosts of the past remain just that — the past.
Related: Colombia: FARC Dissident Factory Uncovered in Medellin After Explosion Attack.