At the time of this writing, reports indicate that volcanic ash is falling from a volcanic eruption near Tokyo , and Mount Redoubt, just 106 miles from Anchorage and one of 130 volcanoes in the State of Alaska , is ready to erupt once again. According to the USGS, Mount Redoubt is one of the USA 's most threatening volcanoes. In 1989, a 747 flying hundreds of miles away flew through a cloud of volcanic ash from this volcano and lost power in all four engines. It lost over 9000 ft. of altitude before power was restored.
Being an actor in a true story about volcanoes may be the farthest thing from your mind, but did you know there are dozens of volcanoes in the United States , and volcanoes on every continent? The State of Hawaii is built entirely on volcanic geology. California has several volcanoes, including Mt. Shasta and Mt. Lassen , and is part of the Cascade Volcanic Arc that includes volcanoes in Oregon , Washington State , and British Columbia . Some cities on that arc include Portland , Seattle , and Vancouver . The city of Auckland , New Zealand (population 1.3 million) has within its territory about 50 small volcanoes, not nearly as large or impressive as Mt. Ruapehu and Mt. Egmont to the south, but volcanoes just the same. And so it goes in Japan , Philippines , Indonesia , Chile , Mexico , Italy , East Africa – so many volcanoes.
Next time you plan a vacation, consider this story:
In 1991, friends of ours were then living and working in Hong Kong like over 60,000 other American and British citizens. For one of their vacation holidays, they did as so many others – they headed to a resort town in the Philippines less than 2 hours away by air. The beach resort was fabulous, and the pampered service was legendary. Unfortunately, their resort was not far from the shadow of Mt. Pinatubo , one of the world's great volcanoes. It's eruption that June of 1991 was the second largest volcanic eruption of the 20 th Century, and caught our friends very much by surprise – they had not believed the warnings, because they had heard warnings and felt earthquakes on other trips there.
Instead of a fine and restful outing to the beach with their baby girl, they were stranded with hundreds of other tourists, huddled together in hotel rooms, several families to a room, without adequate food, baby formula, diapers, clean water, a shortage of sanitation supplies, and no way out of the area for over a week. Communications were down. Electricity and running water no longer existed.
Nearby, the Clark Air Base (US) was abandoned. The US Naval base at Subic Bay was evacuated and closed. Wet ash, called “tephra”, was dropped on the entire island of Luzon – because a tropical rainstorm mixing with the ash left a heavy carpet of tephra between 6 and 12 inches thick covering everything, and the weight of it was enough to collapse roofs, even on well-built structures at the high school, and costing the lives of hundreds. The eruption lasted for nine hours and caused many severe earthquakes. Our friends were lucky, and had a good home to finally return to in Hong Kong . Their experience was just an adventure, compared to the unfortunate residents of Luzon , Philippines who spent months digging out and restoring their island.
What is a Volcano?
A volcano is a mountain that opens downward to a reservoir of molten rock. Unlike most mountains, which are pushed up from below the earth's surface, volcanoes are built up by an accumulation of lava and ash from their own eruptions. When pressure from gases within the molten rock becomes too great, an eruption occurs.
When an eruption occurs, poisonous gases, ash, lava, and rocks, are forced into the air. Deaths will occur in the immediate area of a volcano.
Because of their intense heat, lava flows are a great fire hazard. Lava destroys everything in its path, and creates fires when coming near any flammable materials. Fortunately, lava flows move slowly enough that people can usually get out of the way.
The most common cause of death from a volcano is suffocation. When ash is spewed into the air it reduces the oxygen supply available to breathe. Infants, the elderly, and people with respiratory conditions such as asthma, emphysema, and other chronic lung diseases are very susceptible to suffocation or lung damage from ash in the air.
Fresh volcanic ash made of pulverized rock, is gritty, abrasive, and can be corrosive. Small ash particles may scratch the eye and cause eye disease. Volcanic ash may also damage machinery, engines, electrical equipment, or anything with moving parts. When ash is mixed with water it becomes very heavy and can collapse roofs, and snap tree branches and power lines. After Mount St. Helens erupted in 1980, ash was deposited in 11 states.
Most gases from a volcano quickly blow away. However, heavier gases, such as carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide may collect in valleys and other low-lying areas. Both of these gases can cause breathing problems in both the healthy and those with impaired respiratory systems.
Although these gases usually blow away quickly, it is possible that people who are close to the volcano, or who are in the low-lying areas downwind, may be exposed to dangerous levels. Those exposed may experience irritations of the eyes, nose, and throat, and experience rapid breathing, headaches, dizziness, swelling and spasm of the throat, and even suffocation.
Volcanic eruptions can result in additional threats to health, even many miles away, such as power outages and food and water contamination. Volcanic eruptions may also be accompanied by other natural disasters such as earthquakes, mud slides, flash floods, rock slides, fires, acid rain, and when a volcano is in or near the ocean, tsunamis.
Active volcanoes in the U.S. are found (as we noted earlier) mainly in Hawaii , Alaska , the Cascade Mountain Range in California , Oregon , and Washington . A mega volcano also exits in Yellowstone National Park . Just as we are aware of the danger of an earthquake in Los Angeles or San Francisco , and prepare for the possibility when we visit those cities, that potential will not keep us from visiting there. Likewise, the threat of a volcanic event will not keep me from visiting Washington or Oregon . We should, however, be informed, stay aware, and be reasonably prepared.
Unlike other disasters, volcanoes do give us a warning that something is about to happen. If there is a warning, heed it and you will be fine.
Before a Volcano Erupts:
