Tumaco

Tumaco, city, Nariño departamento, southwestern Colombia. It is situated on the Pacific coast, on a small island at the south end of Tumaco Bay. Named for an Indian chief, Tumas, who founded the settlement in 1570, Tumaco experienced prosperity as the point of export for rubber and cinchona bark gathered in the eastern rain forest. After the boom period, Tumaco declined until it became the terminus of a pipeline from the Putumayo oil fields about 100 miles (160 km) to the southeast. There is some light industry in the city, which is a centre of lumbering activity including plywood and molding factories, and gold mines are worked nearby. Tumaco is also a major fishing port with tuna and sardine canneries. It is accessible by road from Pasto, in the Andes, and has an airport. Pop. (2007 est.) 88,845.