30 years ago today. This is what happens when Mother nature gets REALLY REALLY mad at us.
I was there, sort of. Mount St. Helens is visible from Portland but is in Washington state. I lived 20 minutes southwest of Portland Oregon. I was 8, and I remember it really well. That's the crap. Why? Well because I can remember something that happened 30 years ago!!! Ugh-that makes me feel kinda old.
I was outside and the ash began to fall. I thought it was snow. We didn't get much snow in Portland, and certainly not in May. I quickly figured out it was something other than snow. I went to find Mom, who was feeling unwell. From her bedroom window I watched as it erupted and the sky turned black and stayed that way for days. It was pretty scary watching it on TV as the mudslides washed away all the animals, all the trees like toothpicks, all the foilage was burnt to a crisp, and some reporters lost their lives up there trying to report on it.
That's the sad part, the mountain has recovered, life began anew eventually, but people forget there were 57 people up there who lost their lives over that week. I remember one in particular. His house got washed away at some point with him in it. His name was Harry Truman (not the president!), and he was a surly old guy who refused to leave the only home he had ever known. He never evacuated, the mountain took him.
So in remembrance of those who lost their lives that day and the days following, you are not forgotten.
4 comments:
Yikes! I remember that Sunday morning too - I must be getting old right along with you. We were on our way to church and had a perfect view of the mountain as we went over a freeway overpass. I remember feeling a tad bit scared.
I collected ash when it fell down.
My mother made me wear a dust mask to walk to school for a week or so (how embarassing!)
I remember being amazed at some of the people who walked out of there - one of them a photographer, who described it as hell on earth. I'm so glad I wasn't there. But it was pretty awesome to see from our safe view in Portland!
We live on the Oregon Coast and I remember collecting the ash in little film capsules. I believe we still have some of it.
This is lovely post.
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My first thought when I saw the title of your post was, "Wow! I was only 8 when that happened" only to read on and realize that we are the same age. :)
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