Explosion likely on Mount St. Helens

Hurricanes step aside, volcanoes make a much better TV event, even better than earthquakes.

Clues indicate an explosion likely on Mount St. Helens

Scientists studying the recent increase in seismic activity on Mount St. Helens said the signs seem to indicate that an explosion could be brewing inside the SW Washington mountain’s huge crater.

Scientist with the U.S. Geological Survey install a GPS unit at Mount St. Helen's, Wash.

“We’re looking at an unusually high level of seismic activity that we had never seen before. The seismic energy is just amazing,” said U.S. Geological Survey chief scientist, Dr. Jeff Wynn. “The earthquakes are pretty much nonstop now… there’s constant rock breaking going on.”


Wynn said an explosion is more likely than an eruption but even the experts cannot predict exactly when it will hit. He said scientists are also leading away from the theory that the seismic activity may be weather-related.


Small earthquakes rattled Mount St. Helens almost constantly Tuesday morning as experts scrambled to determine the significance of some of the most intense seismic activity in nearly 20 years.


USGS Seismologist Seth Moran said there was potential for explosions within the crater that could throw rocks as far as the rim.

I guess all of us on the West Coast could not tolerate the East Coast getting all the attention.