Washington Looks Back At Mount St. Helens Eruption, 42 Years Later

SEATTLE — At 8:32 a.m. on May 18, 1980 Mount St. Helens erupted, coating the Pacific Northwest in ash. It killed 57 people and caused more than $1 billion in damages. It was the deadliest and most destructive volcanic eruption in U.S. history.

On Tuesday, exactly 42 years since the disaster, agencies across Washington took some time to look back at the historic event.

In addition to the dozens of human deaths, the blast also killed an estimated 12 million Chinook and Coho salmon fingerlings, 5,000+ deer and 1,500 elk. It also destroyed 200 homes, 47 bridges and 185 miles of highway, the Department of Natural Resources said.

According to the USGS, the Mount St. Helens eruption gave the whole world a new appreciation of the destructive power of volcanoes. But it didn't just teach us to fear: it taught scientists how to reclaim land from volcanic ashes, and how new plants and ecosystems turn barren landscapes into thriving new habitats.

"Since 1980, hundreds of volcanologists from around the world have come to study Mount St. Helens," the agency said. "The relationships built with international colleagues, the advances in monitoring, and the accumulation of skills built through cooperative work at Mount St. Helens make it possible for U.S. scientists to aid with eruption responses in other nations."

It's also had a practical effect, helping to protect Washingtonians elsewhere. For example, lessons learned from the 1980 eruption helped create the current volcano emergency response programs in Puyallup and other communities surrounding Mt. Rainier.

In recognition of the impact Mount St. Helens had on all of Washington, the DNR has declared May Volcano Preparedness Month. The Evergreen State has five major volcanoes, Mount Baker, Glacier Peak, Mount Rainier, Mount St. Helens, and Mount Adams. All five are still active, and all but Mount Adams have erupted in the last 250 years. Before one erupts again, the DNR says to use Volcano Preparedness Month as an opportunity to create an emergency supplies kit. A kit should have at least one gallon of water per person for several days, a three-day supply of non-perishable food, a flashlight, first aid kit and extra batteries.

It should also include a battery powered or hand crank radio and a NOAA Weather Radio. Following an eruption, the National Weather Service will issue ashfall and lahar warnings. Ashfall can cause poor air quality, disrupt transportation and damage infrastructure, but lahars are the more immediate danger: they're mixtures of water and rocks that flow down the slopes of volcanos, depositing large amounts of sediment and levelling almost anything in their path.

On top of the disaster kit, the USGS also recommends every household make an emergency preparedness plan by designating responsibilities to each member of the home, choosing a place to meet following a disaster and setting an out-of-area emergency contact. The USGS also recommends having an evacuation plan in place in advance, including what route you'll take and where you'll stay. That way, if a lahar is coming, you already know how to get out.

>> Read more tips on earthquake preparedness from the USGS.