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Eruption at Mount St Helens (2/6)

This is also part of this series: Surviving Disaster (6)

Subjects: Disaster Preparedness, Earth Science, Geography, Geology, History, Science, Volcanoes

Grade Level: SrH-Adult
Producer: BBC
Closed Captioned: No

Running Time: 60 mins
Country of Origin: Great Britain
Study Guide: No

Copyright Date: 2006
Available in French: No

This massive eruption devastated the surrounding area and killed 57 people, including volcanologist David Johsnton who was monitoring the volcano. But scientists are now able to predict possible eruptions within weeks or even days. Mount St Helens in Washington State once rose almost 10,000ft and was surrounded by a national forest that covered more than a million acres. The volcano had not erupted for over a hundred years but, in 1980, the area was rocked by a series of earthquakes. As the earthquakes became more frequent and were accompanied by explosions of ash and steam, a team of scientists was despatched to the area to monitor the situation.

This film tells the story of the eruption from the perspective of the scientists and locals working and living in the shadow of this time bomb. With surrounding towns and lives at risk, and some locals refusing to move, scientists battled against the clock to try to unlock the mountain's secrets. Streams of reporters, sightseers, visitors and students of volcanology were drawn to the mountain, tempted by the spectacle of an eruption.

The programme features testimony from a range of eyewitnesses, who provide first-hand accounts of the destructive power of nature. When the volcano finally erupted on 18 May 1980, its massive sideways explosion took everyone by surprise and unleashed a destructive force estimated to be 500 times the power of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

PLEASE NOTE: The series contains some disturbing and graphic images.

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