Richard Lasher, a Boeing employee at the Frederickson Plant, was driving his Ford Pinto on his way to ride his dirt bike around Spirit Lake when the St. Helens mountain erupted in front of him. Original image taken May 18, 1980.
For months in early 1980, scientists, journalists, and ordinary people listened anxiously to rumblings in the long quiescent volcano Mount St. Helens. Still, when a massive explosion took the top off the mountain, no one was prepared. Fifty-seven people died, including newlywed logger John Killian (for years afterward, his father searched for him in the ash), scientist Dave Johnston, and celebrated local curmudgeon Harry Truman. The lives of many others were forever changed.
