Volcano Updates

Strong southeasterly winds in the vicinity of Mount St. Helens have picked up loose volcanic ash erupted during the 1980 eruptions of Mount St. Helens and are carrying it to the northwest. The National Weather Service has issued a CWA for the low-level event and suggests that the maximum cloud height is 12,000 ft (3,658 m) above sea level. The National Weather Service expects strong southeasterly wind conditions to continue for several hours. 

This phenomenon is not the result of recent volcanic activity and occurs during times of high winds and dry snow-free conditions in the Mount St. Helens region. No eruption is in progress and Mount St. Helens remains at Aviation Color Code Green and Volcano Alert Level Normal. Resuspended volcanic ash should be considered hazardous and could be damaging to aircraft and health. 

For more information on volcanic ash and human health, visit the following website: http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/ash/

Official warnings about these ash resuspension events are issued by the National Weather Service: https://www.weather.gov/sew/ & https://www.weather.gov/pqr & https://www.weather.gov/zse. 

Forecasts of airborne ash hazard to aircraft: https://www.weather.gov/aviation/awc. Volcanic Ash Advisories: https://www.weather.gov/vaac/

Forecasts of ashfall: http://www.weather.gov/afc