[77 TRASHCAN]

Two years ago when I was recovering from an auto accident, I had time to waste.

I read a bunch about this volcanic event. I wondered a lot about that pickup. Finally found a story on it. A rescue helicopter landed near the pickup. A person got out and checked the vehicle. Sadly there were 2 people in it. Sitting as they were, driver with his hands on the steering wheel and passenger with his hands in his lap. The life must have been taken out of them in a second.
That's a 69-72 Chevrolet pickup, looks to be 3/4 ton, possibly. There's pictures of the melted dash somewhere on the internet. I wonder if the truck is still with us???

[71GP76TA]

I was living in Spokane at the time. We were out dirt bike riding. We thought a storm was rolling in so we loaded up. On the way home the ash started falling. Then we heard on the radio that it blew. Driving around on the streets was weird. It was almost like driving on a dirt road with big clouds of ash dust. Sure made a mess out of things.

[69gtocv]

Originally Posted by 71GP76TA

I was living in Spokane at the time. We were out dirt bike riding. We thought a storm was rolling in so we loaded up. On the way home the ash started falling. Then we heard on the radio that it blew. Driving around on the streets was weird. It was almost like driving on a dirt road with big clouds of ash dust. Sure made a mess out of things.

Small world. I was a senior at Shadle Park HS that year. My girlfriend and I had spent the night at a friends. Next day we're driving around and like you said, looked like a huge thunderstorm rolling in. Ah, the days before internet/cell phones... much simpler.

I remember everyone saying don't drive in the ash, it'll grenade your engine

[Lightfoot]

I remember when National Geographic did a 10th anniversary article about it. Showing how nature was 'repairing' itself.
There was a photo of a destroyed 71-72 Grand Prix still sitting where it got captured by the blast.

I was waxing my car a couple weeks after the eruption and I was getting black grit in the cloth that I wiped the wax off with. It dawned on me that it must be fallout from St Helens. I lived in western Michigan.

[Drag Star Le Mans]

I was living in Stanwood, WA when it went off. The thought was that someone was dynomighting tree stumps which wasn't unusual at the time.