May, Volcano Awareness Month

Last year, Governor Gregoire of Washington declared May to be "Volcano Awareness Month" in Washington State, a decision which, although relatively unknown, is a wise one. Washington hosts five major Volcanoes, 4 of which are well known. From North to South there are Mount Baker, Glacier Peak, Mount Rainier, Mount Saint Helens, and Mount Adams. Of these five, the most recognizable in the state and the most well known as a volcano, is of course, Mount Saint Helens.

The 18th of this month marked the 33rd anniversary of the most cataclysmic volcanic eruption in the United States, Mount Saint Helen's in 1980. 57 people died as a two month build up in activity culminated in a titanic eruption that razed 230 square miles of timber to the ground, sent massive lahars (mudflows) churning down the surrounding valleys, and dropped ash as far east as Oklahoma. Since then the volcano has been modestly quiet, with a smaller eruptive period from 2004-2008, but I don't have a shadow of a doubt in my mind that we will see Mount Saint Helens reawake again in our lifetimes, perhaps even more violently than May 18, 1980.

Mount Saint Helens erupts on May 18, 1980

But it is exceedingly important that we remember that Mount Saint Helens is not the only, or even the most dangerous volcano on our doorstep. 60 miles southeast of the Seattle-Tacoma metropolitan area, there is a sleeping giant almost 6,000 feet higher than it's southern fitful neighbor. Mount Rainier looms over the Puget Sound region, looking peaceful enough from that angle, with it's well rounded silhouette sitting backdrop to the Emerald City. But Mount Rainier is a decade volcano, considered to be the most dangerous in the United States. And it's not for reasons that many people think. Mount Rainier is a relatively gentle volcano in terms of volcanism itself. It does not produce (or at least, very rarely) the massive explosions and churning ashclouds of St. Helens. No, Mount Rainier's deadliest threat may not even need to be triggered by volcanic activity, but rather, it can simply give in to the relentless pull of gravity itself.

Mount Rainier has, can, and probably will produce massive avalanches, Some of which have swept across areas populated by some 200,000+ people and then into Puget Sound. These avalanches are the result of rock being weakened by acidic water circulating in the volcanic cone, and then simply losing their structure and collapsing. If one of these mudflow events happened today, the results would probably be catastrophic.

Aside from Mount Rainier and St. Helen's major threats to the region. There are three other volcanoes that still have the potential to create their own hazards. Baker, Glacier Peak, and Adams. I will not outline the hazards now, since that would take too much time. But this is where Volcano Awareness Month comes in. It is our job, as people living under the threat of these fire mountains, to teach ourselves how we can cope with and prepare for a volcanic eruption in our state. The more people are prepared, the faster we can get ourselves out of the danger zone and adequately protect ourselves in the event of a volcanic unrest.

I know you've heard it all before, Prepare, stock up food, get evacuation plans ready, but I urge you, this month, when you have a few minutes. Ask yourself, if you're travelling on I-5 and Mount Rainier erupts or suffers from a avalanche that turns into a mudflow, where do you go? If a sudden shift in prevailing winds carries the ash column from Mount Saint Helens over the sound area, what do you do to protect yourself from the fallout? If you happen to be in a river valley around a volcano, and activity begins, how do you escape? Think about these things, be prepared, because I believe adamantly that in our lifetime we will see some degree of volcanic activity again in our state. We just have to be ready.