Hawaii volcano sparks fears that the ‘Ring of Fire’ will see US West Coast eruptions
The West Coast is home to an 800-mile-long chain of volcanoes connected to the ‘Ring of Fire’, an area of the Pacific Ocean that is prone to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions
The eruption of a Hawaii volcano in the Pacific “Ring of Fire” has experts warily eyeing volcanic peaks on America’s West Coast that are also part of the geologically active region.
“There’s lots of anxiety out there,” said Liz Westby, geologist at the US Geological Survey Cascades Volcano Observatory in Vancouver, Washington, in the shadow of Mount St. Helens.
“They see destruction, and people get nervous.”
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The West Coast is home to an 800-mile (1,300-kilometre) chain of 13 volcanoes, from Washington state’s Mount Baker to California’s Lassen Peak.
They include Mount St. Helens, whose spectacular 1980 eruption in the Pacific northwest killed dozens of people and sent volcanic ash across the country, and massive Mount Rainier, which towers above the Seattle metro area.
Kilauea, on Hawaii’s Big Island, is threatening to blow its top in coming days or weeks after sputtering lava for a week, forcing about 2,000 people to evacuate, destroying two dozen homes and threatening a geothermal plant.
Experts fear the volcano could hurl ash and boulders the size of refrigerators miles into the air.