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Cascade Volcano Hazards

Quick Link: Cascade Volcano Seismicity

St. Helens main eruption, photo by Austin Post, USGS The USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory

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VOLCANO VIDEOS Videos can be ordered by mail with an enclosed check made out to NWIA, or by phone or fax with VISA credit card from: Northwest Interpretive Association (NWIA), 909 First Avenue, Suite 630, Seattle, WA 98104, Telephone: (206) 220-4140, Fax: (206) 220-4143

Perilous Beauty, about the risk of lahars from Mount Rainier, was produced by the
USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory.

Perilous Beauty: The Hidden Dangers of Mount Rainier

Volcanic activity, enormous landslides, and glacial erosion have continuously re-shaped Mount Rainier's magnificent cone. These natural processes have also sent large and dangerous mudflows rushing down all river valleys leading away from the volcano.

Understanding the nature of these past events is key to reducing our risk from Mount Rainier's future activity. This 29-minute video uses computer animation, eruption footage, interviews with scientists, and vivid aerial and ground shots of the mountain to show how mudflows from Mount Rainier can affect communities in Western Washington.

  • Hundreds of lava flows erupted over the past 5600 years have built the summit cone that now crowns Mount Rainier. Today, volcanic heat from within the mountain keeps the crater rim free of snow during much of the year.
  • Large landslides from Sunset Amphitheater and other parts of the volcano have generated mudflows throughout recent history. Future landslides and mudflows are inevitable, and areas likely to inundated by these flows have been mapped by scientists.

Reducing Volcanic Risk, about the risks posed by volcanos, was produced by (IAVCEI) and (UNESCO).

Reducing Volcanic Risk

This videotape showcases how people can lower their risk from volcanic activity. Three steps can volcanic eruptions from becoming volcanic disasters:

  • Identify Hazard Areas
  • Monitor Volcanos
  • Develop an Emergency Plan

Stunning video of volcanos from around the world shows how these three steps saved lives when they were used. Reducing Volcanic Risk also describes the critical elements of emergency plans that made the difference between life and death for tens of thousands of people living in the shadows of active volcanos. People must be informed of the volcano hazards they face. Scientists and public officials must announce warnings clearly. And emergency plans must be tested and practiced ahead of time and used without hesitation when a volcano threatens to erupt.

This 20-minute eductional program and its companion, Understanding Volcanic Hazards, produced by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemisty of the Earth's Interior (IAVCEI) and the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), are intended to help prevent future deaths from volcanic eruptions.

  • Dante's Peak - USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory Comments
  • This is file /SEIS/PNSN/HAZARDS/volcanoes.html, last modified 6/19/01