Mount St. Helens: A Deadly Volcano

Modern history has had its share of deadly volcanic eruptions. Mount St. Helens, located in the state of Washington, was once called “the Smoking Mountain” by Native Americans. The once smoking mountain was becoming extremely active, and by March of 1980, the activity within the volcano had begun to increase significantly.

Because of the increased activity, those living near the mountain were encouraged to evacuate. Unfortunately, not everyone listened to the warnings and left the area. One can only assume that those who chose to stay did not realize just how dangerous the situation was about to become.

Then, on May 18, 1980, the area around the volcano was hit with an earthquake. Parts of the mountain began to shift and one of the largest landslides ever recorded followed as a result of the earthquake. But the mountain wasn’t finished. The volcano erupted with a blast that took out trees and leveled the area as far as twelve miles from the point of the blast. The explosion caused the debris from the landslide to become liquefied, and everything was propelled by the force of the explosion down the mountain at speeds surpassing one hundred miles an hour. The rush of debris, in turn, flooded the surrounding riverbanks, causing them to overflow and destroy everything in their path.

Despite the warnings, everyone did not reach safety. Fifty-seven people died as a result of this natural disaster. Scientists continue to monitor the still active volcano and hope such a catastrophe as what occurred in 1980 will not repeat itself in the near future.