Blow Down

Thousands of trees in the North Fork Toutle River drainage area are shown blown down by the force of the May 18, 1980, eruption of Mount St.Helens.

The recent volcanic activity in Iceland has been in the news a lot recently, and the series of photos of the eruption and it's impact on various parts of the world have been fascinating to see. Even this week, flights in parts of Europe were suspended due to concerns about volcanic debris in the atmosphere. Nature, every now and again, makes sure to remind us who is really in charge of the planet.

The Eyjafjallajokull Icelandic volcano eruption is nowhere near the cataclysmic scale of the Mount St. Helens eruption that took place thirty years ago yesterday. Fifty seven people were killed and 230 square miles of forest were flattened during the huge volcanic explosion that took place on May 18th 1980. The image above shows the devastating effect on the landscape - it has a very creepy symmetry about it. The way that the forests have been blown down just shows the force behind the blast, and how it eerily followed the geography of the land. Mudflows, caused when the glacier ice melted, also caused a huge amount of damage.

The photograph above was found via the fantabulous Big Picture photoblog were a selection of 37 photographs tell the fascinating story of what happened when Mount St Helens erupted with such force. You can find the Mount St Helens photos HERE.