After an earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale on May 18, 1980, Mount St. Helens erupted with a mushroom-shaped ash-filled cloud rising thousands of feet into the sky. At the same time the north side of the mountain collapsed and formed an avalanche of rocks and debris that had a devastating effect on the area below destroying more then 150 square miles of forest and recreational area and killing 57 people.
After the 1980 eruption the volcano has remained calm but active occasionally releasing some ash and steam.
Current volcanic events in October 2004 can be followed at Gifford Pinchot National Forest home page.
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