Christopher Anderson's Mount St. Helens

On the morning of May 18, 1980, Spokesman-Review photographer Christopher Anderson jumped in a plane at Felts Field and headed the the erupting Mount St. Helens.

Section:Gallery

Tue., May 5, 2020

Chuck Nole is framed in a helicopter windshield displaying the plume of Mount St. Helens during a search and rescue mission.

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Mount St. Helens erupts, blanketing the region with ash and debris, on May 18, 1980.

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The 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens sent a plume of ash that blotted out the sun in parts of Washington and North Idaho. The ash fell like snow, drifted as deep as 2 feet, and crushed crops, halted transportation and caused schools and businesses to close.

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A west slope aerial shot shows mudslide route, plume at top of peak and off to left the second plume. Shot was taken Monday at 1 p.m. prior to latest eruption. Mudslide route with residue is shown at dead center exiting from crater top.

Christoper Anderson Sr
Hillsides even 10 or 15 miles away from Mount St. Helens show the trees blown down by the force of the May 18, 1980 eruption.

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The mud and debris spewed from Mount St. Helens on May 18, 1980 clogged every river and stream, knocked out bridges and closed every road in the downstream flood.

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Washington State Gov. Dixy 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 May 18, 1980.

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You could rake it, shovel it or use a broom, but the piles of ash from the eruption of Mount St. Helens continued to clog the streets and sewers of Spokane for months after May 18, 1980.

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One year after the eruption of Mount St. Helens the landscape is still scarred with shattered timber and a deep covering of ash and mud.

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The crew of a National Guard rescue helicopter is reflected in the upper right of the photo on May 19, 1980, as they search for survivors of the Mount St. Helens eruption. Mud and debris have swept down the Toutle River and wiped out bridges and sections of highway.

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Approaching Mount St. Helens from the southwest on May 18, 1980, gives you a sense of the scope and size of the eruption that devastated the area.

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When Mount St. Helens exploded on May 18, 1980, a giant wave of gas and energy blew at 750 mph across the landscape, laying timber down like a giant hand had swept across the hills. It is estimated that 200 square miles of forest was destroyed.

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The day after the May 18, 1980, eruption, Mount St. Helens continued to spew ash, steam and debris.

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