BREAKING NEWS: Mount Saint Helen Blew Her Top

Mount St. Helens emits cloud of ash
Volcano’s emission forecast to drift away from cities
BREAKING NEWS MSNBC
Updated: 8:46 p.m. ET March 8, 2005

Mount St. Helens spewed out a cloud of ash thousands of feet in the air Tuesday afternoon.

KING TV in Seattle broadcast scenes of the emission. Station meteorologist Jeff Renner reported that wind patterns were forecast to take the ash over the Cascade Range, not over population centers.

There was no indication yet whether there was any eruption from the volcano.

Courtesy Frindevil

http://www.chikarin.com/dq/rosecity.jpg

Pic from Rose City

MOUNT ST. HELENS UPDATE

Current status is Volcano Advisory (Alert Level 2); aviation color code ORANGE

Growth of the new lava dome inside the crater of Mount St. Helens continues, accompanied by low rates of seismicity, low emissions of steam and volcanic gases, and minor production of ash. During such eruptions, episodic changes in the level of activity can occur over days to months. The eruption could also intensify suddenly or with little warning and produce explosions that cause hazardous conditions within several miles of the crater and farther downwind. Small lahars could suddenly descend the Toutle River if triggered by heavy rain or by interaction of hot rocks with snow and ice. These lahars pose a negligible hazard below the Sediment Retention Structure (SRS) but could pose a hazard along the river channel upstream.

Potential ash hazards: Wind forecasts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), coupled with eruption models, show that any ash clouds that rise above the crater rim today would drift eastward early in the day and northeastward later.

Potential ash hazards to aviation: Under current eruptive conditions, any ash clouds produced are unlikely to exceed 15,000 feet in altitude. Ashfall from such events rarely reaches more than 20 miles downwind. If the lava dome continues to grow over the next several months, it will become able to produce larger ash clouds that reach higher altitudes and extend farther downwind.

did anyone having any warning??? was it expected? at all??

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Originally Posted by princesskittypoo

did anyone having any warning??? was it expected? at all??

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yeah ... people have been watching it closely for several months ... I remember hearing about people traveling there around Christmas to get a better look.

that is when I became aware of it ... its very possible that it has been seriously monitored well before December

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Originally Posted by danceyogamom

yeah ... people have been watching it closely for several months ... I remember hearing about people traveling there around Christmas to get a better look.

that is when I became aware of it ... its very possible that it has been seriously monitored well before December

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You are correct.