Mt. St. Helens lets off steam

MOUNT ST. HELENS, Wash. – A new column of steam emerged from Mount St. Helens on Sunday, a lazy plume that rose from the crater for several hours and reminded scientists of the volcano’s dome-building activity 20 years ago.

The billow of steam rose from the south side of the volcano’s crater at dawn Sunday from the area where an upwelling of rock has grown.

From an airplane, a thick plume of steam could be seen drifting at least 500 feet above the rim Sunday afternoon.

Scientists believe the steam was created when part of the bubble on the south side of the dome broke off, taking some of the glacier with it.

The scientists said Sunday’s steam cloud had no new ash but may have included some old ash from the 1980s.