Mount St. Helens Lava Dome Still Growing Fast

Mount St. Helens Lava Dome Still Growing Fast

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Story Published: Nov 17, 2004 at 7:27 PM PDT

Story Updated: Aug 31, 2006 at 1:47 AM PDT

By Keith Eldridge

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MOUNT ST. HELENS - For the first time since Mount St. Helens came back to life at the end of September, KOMO 4 News is being allowed inside the danger zone. But, it's only for a brief moment.

Wednesday we were five miles from the crater. Scientists believe any eruption wouldn't send any rocks and debris further than three miles. Visitors still have to stay further away.

Wally and Mary Luckwitz are just stunned by the beauty of Mount St. Helens as the clouds spill into the crater and mix with the steam.

Wally says, "It's just so hard to believe." Mary says, "Oh look way up there you can see some steam. See it. Is that steam coming out?"

The scientists here say there was a small steam eruption Wednesday.

The Luckwitzs last saw Mount St. Helens 12 years ago and came all the way back from Ohio to see it again.

"It looked very dormant," says Wally. "Now it looks like it's alive, it really does. It's just so awesome." They Luckwitzs are looking at Mount St Helens from more than seven miles away.

But we have the rare opportunity to see the volcano from inside the evacuation zone. It's the Johnston Ridge Observatory that was evacuated six weeks ago.

"It's always exciting to be up here at Johnston Ridge and look in at the new dome," says MSH Scientist Peter Frenzen.

It's a dome that is hard to see on this day. It is ten stories tall and hot magma is oozing out onto its surface at an unbelievable rate of a dump truck load every second. The volcano is trying to rebuild itself.

MSH visitor centers manager Todd Cullings explains, "It could exceed the size of 1986 dome by Christmas and it could refill the crater and be that beautiful cone-shaped mountain the way it was prior to the eruption within about 11 and a half years."

As for the potential of a big ash eruption the USGS says it's still there but much less likely than a few weeks ago.

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