Volcano: Case Study of Mount Saint Helens

Mount St. Helens in Washington erupted on May 18, 1980, after an a magnitude 4.2 earthquake shook up the north face of the volcano. There had been several small earthquakes leading up to the eruption of the volcano that had been dormant for 123 years.. It exploded as lava shot out and volcanic ash rose high into the atmosphere. The eruption melted snow, ice, and glaciers on the mountain resulting in mudslides.

Consequences

The eruption earned the title of the most deadly volcanic eruption after it killed 57 people and thousands of animals – 1,500 elk, 5,000 deer, and 12 million Chinook and Coho salmon. The eruption packed the force of 27,000 Hiroshima bombs.

Hundreds of square miles of land turned into waste as the volcanic ash was deposited over eleven U.S. states. The environment was further altered when almost all of the mountain’s glaciers were broken up and most of the snow melted. The resulting mudflow flowed quickly down its slopes and injected vast amounts of material in to the Columbia River.

Also, 300 km (185 miles) of highway were destroyed. Unemployment in the immediate region rose tenfold in the weeks following the eruption. Furthermore, the eruption put a dent in the tourism industry, an important sector of the Washington economy. Although the impacts on unemployment and tournament proved to be temporary, the eruption still inflicted two to three billions dollars in damaged – the costliest volcano eruption in the history of the United States.

Government Response

Congress passed a $951 million disaster relief package that mostly went into the Small Business Administration, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Sources Consulted

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