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North Central Oregon | I was 13 years old and I had taken our family van around to the gas tank to fill it before going to church. Ahead of the eruption we could see the top of Mt. St. Helens from our place here in North Central Oregon, can't see it anymore. I had enjoyed watching the volcano because geology was something I was interested at the time (still am) Anyway I was watching as the Mountain exploded. From our distance I could tell right away that this was not like the other eruptions I had been seeing over the past couple months. I can remember watching in amazement as the ash plume kept roiling and boiling higher and higher. I left the van where it was at an ran to the house yelling that the mountain had just blown apart. I didn't hear the explosion here but had friends that were down in the John Day river canyon that heard it clearly but didn't know what caused it until they came out of the canyon later that afternoon. The ash from that eruption travelled North East from the volcano. We didn't get the ash fall from that event here but did have several ash falls in the area over the course of time amounting to maybe 1/2 inch to an inch total over time. The day of the eruption was a bright blue beautiful day, the contrast became quite stark as the plume headed northeast. You it was like looking at a wall of the darkest clouds you can imagine.
I can remember lots of cars that had permanently etched names or "wash me" on them after people would draw in the in the ash...it was like running sandpaper over the finish. Medical people said that kids and elderly especially should have masks to filter out the ash when in it as it could get into the lungs. remember on a couple of occasions putting on the masks when out fishing as the sky grew dark and the ash started falling. | |
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May 18-30 yrs since mt St Helens
