Looking back: Volcanic ash blankets region

The aftermath of the May 18, 1980, eruption of Mount St. Helens seen through Spokesman-Review photographers' lenses.

Section:Gallery

Mon., May 17, 2010

The ash from the Mount St. Helens eruption blanket the region.

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J. BART RAYNIAK/PHOTO ARCHIVE The Spokesman-Review

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PHOTO ARCHIVE The Spokesman-Review

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Ash from the Mount St. Helens eruption covered fields and streets in Eastern Washington.

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The ash from the Mount St. Helens eruption blanket the region.

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Tekoa farmer Harry Smith cuts grass following the May 18, 1980, eruption of Mount St. Helens, when up to six inches of ash fell on parts of central and Eastern Washington from a cloud that blackened the skies for hundreds of miles across Washington, North Idaho and Western Montana.
John Wolfe shovels out a swimming pool full of volcanic ash at the Cabana Motel in Yakima, Wash.
Ash didn't stop a beer run.

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Keith Domina takes a break from cleaning up ash from the eruption of Mount St. Helens in this May 19, 1980, file photo in Ritzville, Wash., one of the hardest hit towns in the aftermath of the eruption.

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Rural county roads in Whitman county keep on giving replays of the ash fallout every time a car passes. PRS photo.
Abe Lincoln stands ready with a mask. The statue stands two stories tall and was covered with volcanic ash at the time of this private joke.

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Going outside after the eruption of Mount St. Helens meant donning some type of mask to filter out the swirling clouds of ash during the months after the May 18, 1980 event.

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The ash from Mount St. Helens killed engines, stranding people all over the region. This photo was taken May 24, 1980.

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Randy Nukasion, of Seattle, changes the air filter before attempting to drive back to Seattle.

J. Bart Rayniak The Spokesman-Review
Filters by the truckload flow into Spokane. The hottest item besides masks for humans was filters for the car and truck. Several filters were needed just to get across town or drive out into the countryside. Double and triple normal retail was common. Even hording occurred when and where you had the chance.

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Two ladies in Odessa, Wash., stand ready with masks and broom to save their gardens and homes – or at least try battling the ash. With its fine texture and easy transport by wind, the ash moved from one house and right into the next door neighbor's. Many homes found that cleaning up was an exercise in frustration. By the time you finished the second room the first one was full again.

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Amelia Kramer, left, of Ritzville, Wash., sweeps ash from the eruption of Mount St. Helens off of her sidewalk as a city employee plows ash off the street in this photo taken several days after the May 18, 1980, eruption. Ritzville was one of the hardest hit cities that saw ashfall in Washington, Idaho, and Montana.

Jim Shelton The Spokesman Review
The ash from the Mount St. Helens eruption blankets the region.

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Volcano dust in the Moscow Rosauers parking lot.
People clean ash off the streets in Spokane.

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People use water to clean ash off the streets.

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Don Pease waits to take off in his experimental Boeing F-86 as the ash cloud from Mount St. Helens approaches Fairchild Air Force Base in Spokane around 2:30 p.m., May 18. 1980.
Phil Harris went to Wenatchee for the weekend. On his way home he had to stay overnight in both Moses Lake and Ritzville and cleaned his air filter four times in order to make it home. Ash covered his motor home inside and out.

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Two kids show off their masks in Spokane two days after the eruption of Mount St. Helens. The kids enjoyed the game of bandit or "bad guys" with everyone running around with masked faces. But after several days of having to stay inside or wear their makeshift protection, even the kids lost their sense of humor.

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Joyce Anderson, of Spokane, stranded in the Gilmore Gym in Ritzville, while returning home from a clam-digging vacation on the coast.
A man waits for a bus in downtown Spokane on Sunday, May 18 at 3 p.m. as ash begins to fall from the eruption of Mount St. Helens.

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Chris Pederson cleans off the sidewalk at Indiana Avenue and Wall Street in Spokane.

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Diane Tempest, Rick Burt, John Groset and Margaret McIntyre collected Mount St. Helens ash at 937 E. 17th Ave., Spokane, to package and ship to San Francisco to sell as souvenirs.

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Glenn Mertens in Spokane.

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The National Guard turns out to help. These guardsmen are working on an elderly lady's house in Ritzville, trying to clear a load of ash off her yard and roof. The elderly were hit hardest by the cleanup since they lacked the physical capacity to climb roofs, haul heavy loads and do the heavy manual labor of cleanup. The Guard and other service groups turned out to help.

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City crews used fire hoses to clean up the ash from Mount St. Helens in downtown Spokane on Riverside Avenue.

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Time to break out the fire hose and try getting the ash wet enough to flow into the gutter and down the drain. Don Cebula works in front of the Spokane Goodwill Industry, trying to clear the sidewalk of the mess.

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Phil Gage, employee of Best Way Equipment in Palouse, Wash., takes a break from sweeping off ash-covered farm implements. The town of Palouse is just south of Spokane in the rich wheat growing counties of southeastern Washington.
A crew dressed to clean up ash from Mount St. Helens on May 24, 1980.

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Dumping ash in Ritzville.

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Mount St. Helens face mask.

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Spokane after Mount St. Helens on May 19, 1980.

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Downtown Kelso, Wash., is almost empty the morning of the eruption of Mount St. Helens as people rushed to save their homes or evacuate the area for fear of another eruption. In a bit of dark humor the movie playing at the time is "The Late Great Planet Earth."

Christopher Anderson The Spokesman-Review
People at the ticket counter at the Spokane International Airport on May 21, 1980.

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Passengers arriving at Spokane International Airport wrap cloth or don masks as they wait for transportation in a swirling haze of ash from Mount St. Helens days after the eruption.

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Bank sign.

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Downtown Spokane was covered in ash from the Mount St. Helens eruption.

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Ritzville's Gilmore gym.

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Ritzville.
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A usually busy Riverside Avenue in downtown Spokane is covered with ash on May 19, 1980.

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Ash covered the region after Mount St. Helens erupted.

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Truckers stranded in Sprague.

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Truckers stranded in Sprague, Wash.

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Washington State Patrol Trooper Jim LaMunyon set up a road block at Interstate 90 and Geiger Road in Spokane. An emergency was declared in Eastern Washington, and all State Highways were closed for several days after Mount Saint Helens erupted.

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Spokane police officers Larry Erickson, left, and Greg Sprague, middle, on a routine call at Boneshakers.

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Best Way Equipment cleanup in Palouse, Wash.

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Farm equipment was covered in ash from the Mount St. Helens eruption.

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Pete Kraack blows off a transformer at a substation.

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Autos in downtown Spokane kick up a cloud of ash from the eruption of Mount St. Helens as the sky turns dark at mid-day Sunday May 18, 1980.

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Air Force police officers stand beside a line of evacuation vehicles from Fairchild Air Force Base about 3:15 p.m. on May 18, 1980. The base was having its annual Open House with about 60,000 people viewing aircraft and exhibits. With the explosion of Mount St. Helens and the lack of adequate radio or news reports to the extent of the ash cloud, most of the people were still enjoying the show when ash started falling around Spokane. Getting 60,000 people out of the air base turned into one hectice chore, compounded by the total darkness.

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Al Titus readies Lewis and Clark High School's Hunter Field House as a Red Cross disaster center.

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President Jimmy Carter speaks to the press in Spokane on June 23, 1980.

Christopher Anderson The Spokesman-Review
President Jimmy Carter speaks to the press in Spokane on June 23, 1980.

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Washington Gov. Dixie Lee Ray is swamped by reporters after taking a flight with the National Guard over the devastation left by the eruption of Mount St. Helens.

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