What's new

Mount Saint Helens is smokin! (1 Viewer)

Greg_R

Screenwriter
Joined
Apr 9, 2000
Messages
1,996
Location
Portland, OR
Real Name
Greg
Rob,
Your link is correct but my comment was directed toward the initial post about 'lava flows'. Yes, the NW volcanoes erupt lava but it is in the form of heated rocks (vs. a liquid flow like Hawaii). NW volcanoes are known for pyroclastic flows (extremely hot poisonous gases and ash racing down the side of the mountain at 100s of MPH).
 

Citizen87645

Reviewer
Senior HTF Member
Joined
May 9, 2002
Messages
13,056
Real Name
Cameron Yee
When I was in grade school my friends and I did a video about Mt. St. Helens featuring Harry Truman. He was notorious for swearing so our gag was to have the interview filled with bleeped out words. Unfortunately, our methods were rather crude (one of us stood by the camera and said "beep," but usually a half second too late) and it made us laugh so hard we couldn't finish the video. The entire class watched our final product, which was basically one question and then all of us laughing uncontrollably.
 

Jerry Klawiter

Screenwriter
Joined
Dec 3, 2000
Messages
1,412
More like a steam release as it did in 1980 when I was stationed at ft. lewis. The big bang may or may not come. Time will tell.
I remember all the mushroom clouds that kept coming with the smaller bangs after the big one. Just this week I pulled out a bag of the ash that I saved with some newspapers to show my kids what it was like back then.
 

Jordan_E

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jan 3, 2002
Messages
2,233
St. Helens must really like local news, as it erupted a minute into the noon news.
 

Chris Hovanic

Supporting Actor
Joined
Jan 3, 2003
Messages
545
We (wife, kid, dogs and I) were taking a walk when some guy came running out of his house in his bare feet to see if he could see it. We probably would have missed it if he had not come out.
 

Lynda-Marie

Supporting Actor
Joined
Jun 3, 2004
Messages
761
Ah, yes, Harry Truman. I was a little confused when I heard the name back in 1979-80, and thought someone was referring to the former President. My dad said they should have bundled him up in one of those nice jackets with the extra long sleeves and put him into a cabin with soft, padded walls. Dad, an avid mountain climber, including several trips to the summit of Mt. Rainier, had a great deal of respect for the power of the mountains.

What was funny was the letter from my grandmother in Czechoslovakia, asking if we were all right. The news over on that side of the world was telling some mighty confusing stories, and I believe she mentioned Vesuvius' AD 70 eruption which buried Pompeii, and the eruption of Krakatoa near Java.

According to the Guinness Book of World records Spirit Lake made the highest waves EVER recorded while the eruption was in progress. I wish I had a copy of the GBoWR in front of me, because I can't remember the astronomical number for the height of the waves generated.

My cousin was born about 6 hours or so before the big blast on May 18, 1980. The family still kids him about it. He did a 6 month tour of Fallujah in the Marines, and when he got back to the States last September, St Helens started up again. I told him "Your mountain missed you, and now she's putting on a fireworks display to welcome you back."
 

Greg_R

Screenwriter
Joined
Apr 9, 2000
Messages
1,996
Location
Portland, OR
Real Name
Greg
The height of the waves was easily over 1000 ft (it washed all the way up the side of an adjacent mountain and pulled all the trees back down with it). However, the 1980 eruption was considered 'small' based on the amount of ash ejection.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Top