A Blowout on Mount St. Helens

We celebrated Jerry’s birthday today by touring Mount St. Helens, the volcano which erupted on Sunday, May 18, 1980. At that time a 5.1 earthquake triggered the largest landslide in recorded world history. The north side lateral blast reached 18 miles. The ferocious force of rocks and gas killed most of the animals and plant life in its path plus 57 people. Huge trees 18 feet in diameter snapped at the base, and 240 acres of forest was completely changed in just four minutes. A column of ash rose 15 miles from the gaping crater. If you can imagine an NFL football stadium with sides 600 miles high, that is the size of a structure which would be required to store all of the debris that flowed for miles. Had the blast occurred on a work day, the death toll would have been more than 800--mostly lumberjacks. One victim was old Harry Truman, a Spirit Lake lodge proprietor, who refused to be evacuated when there were early warnings from the volcano. He was featured on national TV saying he was not worried. Regrettably, his beloved Spirit Lake was nearly filled with rushing hot debris as the water leaped 800 feet into the air. When it came back to rest, Spirit Lake was larger but much shallower. Harry should have listened—a lesson for all of us when Mother Nature decides to make a major impact on our earth with her awesome power.

Subsequent to 1980, minor eruptions continued at Mount St. Helens for the next six years. She is continuing to rebuild, and 100 years from now, our great grandchildren may be able to view a Mount St. Helens with no crater. On the other hand, she may decide to blow her top again at any time.

The day was overcast and not ideal for photography. We could only rarely see the very top of the crater. As we finished watching a dramatic video of the eruption at the last visitors center, the huge screen rose slowly to reveal a wall-sized window and the famous crater in all its glory. However, all anyone could see was the thick, white cloud that had completely engulfed the center. Everyone laughed and applauded.

Our 100 mile touring day ended with Gloria treating Jerry to a wonderful dinner at a quaint mountain restaurant overlooking a tranquil river. He even was able to enjoy one of his favorite desserts, strawberry-rhubarb cobbler alamode. Healthy eating and birthdays are usually not compatable.