A magnitude 3.9 earthquake that hit near Mount St. Helens early Wednesday was followed by a swarm of aftershocks. This earthquake swarm is sparking fears that the volcano could be awakening once again.
The first earthquake hit east of Mount St. Helens, 23 miles south-southeast of Morton, just after 12:30 a.m. Wednesday, according to the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network. Nineteen aftershocks have followed with the largest being 2.7 in magnitude.
Mount St. Helens, 96 miles (154 km) south of Seattle, Washington and 50 miles (80 km) northeast of Portland, Oregon, is part of the Cascade Mountain Range that runs from northern California to British Columbia, Canada. It isn’t the only active volcano in the region. In fact, there are 12 other major volcanoes and nearly 3,000 other volcanic features in the Cascades but scientists consider Mt. Saint Helens the most active within the past 10,000 years.
Seismologists said they are confident the earthquake was a tectonic event and not related to magma activity within the volcano itself, but were also rather careful to point out that the location and strength of the quake were atypical. “We have had a lot of small, tiny earthquakes in this zone. What we haven’t had is an earthquake that size, a 3.9 in that area,” said  Bill Steele with PNSN.
Although the large quake happened on the east side of Mt. Saint Helens, seismologists primarily expect to see are smaller swarms of quakes on the west side of the mountain. People from Mountlake Terrace to Seattle and from Portland to Astoria told KIRO 7 they felt the quake. Others in Glenoma, Randle, Morton, and other towns along Highway 12 in Lewis County told KIRO 7 they felt some significant shaking. No damage was reported.
“The trains running, the cars, the airplanes landing, there are a lot of things you can do with just a few seconds of warning,” said University of Washington seismologist John Vidale. Scientists are working on plans to give a 7 to 10-second warning in the event of a major seismic event near Mt. Saint Helens.
University of Washington seismologists say they log about 17 earthquakes a month on average near Mount St Helens, however, in the past month, they have tracked more than 80. But they say there is no cause for concern although these tremors appear very strange, to say the least.
Oh shit i too just felt a rumble oh wait never mind it was just gas….seriously not much we can do bout earthquake only prep for aftermath as if your home ends up a pile
Now volcano thats different shelter in good and tight all sealed up and have a plan for moveing alot of ash safely. Breathing and eye protection cus that ash may be light on your roof but when it rains gonna turn to mud and het real heavy also with rain gonna be alot of flooding. Suppose ill be useing my snow plow as long as i can keep the air filter clean on my truck.prob end up useing shovels cus even my snow blower would get the carb clogged up eventually.
Useing a leaf blower to get ash off roof and out of gutters may work as long as it was strong enough like a gas one. I think a bigger prob would be water cus even if you have a good well eventually after the rain comes its gonna get washed down deep into everything not so much the ash its self but acidity?
Have to have a distiller cus a filter system would clog up in no time. Clean drinkable water be worth far more than gold or silver. Also need some baking soda and test strips to adjust ph of water. So many factors cus eventually im gonna run out of beer and definitely need coffee
Whole lotta shakin going on. Which way to the underground survival bunkers?
Under ground? That would be buried before dead but i suppose in a couple thousand years they could refer to it as a tomb
Can picture that now,
When the toumb was unsealed after digging through 30′ of volcanic ash and debris the heavy doors were swung back to reveal a pile of skelletons against the inside of the large metal and concrete door, scientist assume there was some ritual burrial gone wrong!
Then after further testing they found that they died from high levels of uric acid from drinking their own pee. Numerous empty backets of a substance called kool aid were found laying about
And im not gonna make a cup of coffee out of my pee….my name is not bear guyles
Tribulations poison waters dont drink the pee or the kool aid
That hot stuff down in the earth is moving around a little bit more now. It’s going to break something up here on the surface pretty soon.
Mama Nature just might be about to give us kiddies a talkin’ to. The way we’ve been carrying on with all the nukey this and that – from the Fukushima’d Pacific Ocean to Little Un. She’s probably reckoning it’s just about time to unleash a little geologic lesson or two.
Don’t piss off Mother Nature!!!!
It’s global warming causing it.
That is why the N.K missile landed in N.K.
It is also why it hasn’t been over 10 degrees for two weeks now in Illinois.
Sgt.
Im just hopeing this cold weather stretch will kill all the moles in my yard past couple years no winter to speak of they been haveing a hay day
The pacific rim faults are all waking up and becoming active. Kawleefornya has had several 4.+ as well and many in Japan and Alaska .NO question pressure is getting ready to let go in numerous locations.