Do you remember May 18, 1980? The stories below were submitted by members of our community; if you have stories or photographs about Mount St. Helens before, during, or after the eruption, we'd love to have them.
share your story of May 18, 1980
View of a lifetime
Couple hustled to get an unforgettable view of "The Mountain's" eruption - but had left in such a hurry that they forgot their camera.
Silent, amazing and massive
Battle Ground woman witnessed eruptions without worry - until wondering later what might have happened if the mountain had exploded in a different direction.
Mountain-watcher missed the big one
A day after being a few miles west of Mount St. Helens, he took a trip to the coast and didn't hear about the eruption until his return.
Mountain's blast heard in Roseburg
Couple realizes weeks later that the source of a mysterious Sunday morning boom had been the eruption of Mount St. Helens.
Watching history from the deck
Ed and Elsie Hinkle of Battle Ground had a front-row seat to the eruption of Mount St. Helens from their cabin on Silver Lake.
"It was crazy"
Her fiancé erected the familiar sign along the highway that said "Mount St. Helens is alive and well."
From forest to moonscape
U.S. Forest Service official searching for fires to fight instead finds a landscape devastated by Mount St. Helens.
Eyewitnesses to THE eruption
Family on trip to Long Beach had a clear view from Ridgefield as a small plume turned into a massive eruption.
Waiting for the ash to fall
A childhood memory in Moses Lake will stay with him forever.
Blast's shockwave reached far
"Hundreds of miles away, and our 10-story building shook like an earthquake. "
Lifelong interest started with a boom
"At one point in college, I even tried to become a vulcanologist (until I realized how much science was involved). Still, it's a fond memory for me to travel back to the site and tell the story to my wife and son, watching his eyes glimmer with the same fascination."
Eruption prompted fear, uncertainty
"It was dark, hazy and eerie outside. We lived in Shelton at the time and were dead sure this was 'the end of the world.'"
A spectacular view from Shelton
Mom of three also remembers ash mixed with rain after future eruptions.
share your story of May 18, 1980
33 years later, volcano brings world travelers | By Eric Florip
New Mount St. Helens website launched | By The Columbian
Trust buys land near Mount St. Helens | By Eric Florip
Access to Mount St. Helens to reopen Saturday | By The Columbian
Volcano observatory cancels open house due to budget cuts | By The Columbian
