Forty years ago Mt. St. Helens in Cowlitz County, Washington erupted showing the surrounding areas with ash.
My family grew up in Amboy, Washington about one hours drive away from the base of the volcano. I grew up hearing stories of the ash falling like snowfall and how family friends were evacuating.
According to The New York Times, the eruption released eight times more energy then every bomb that was dropped in World War II. The blast killed 57 people back on May 18th, 1980 and the mountain, as well as Crater Lake, remain popular tourist spots even all these years later.