On May 18, 1980, Mount St. Helens in Washington state erupted in one of the most powerful volcanic events in U.S. history, forever transforming the landscape. A magnitude 5.1 earthquake triggered the largest recorded landslide, causing the mountain’s north face to collapse. This sudden pressure release unleashed a lateral blast of ash, gas, and rock moving at supersonic speeds, flattening 230 square miles of forest.
The eruption sent ash 15 miles into the sky, darkening the atmosphere and spreading debris across 11 states. Fifty-seven people lost their lives, and thousands of animals were killed. Today, Mount St. Helens serves as a powerful symbol of nature’s raw strength and resilience, as new ecosystems gradually reclaim the once-devastated land.
