Immediate public health concerns and actions in volcanic eruptions: lessons from the Mount St. Helens eruptions, May 18-October 18, 1980
The Centers for Disease Control in collaboration with affected state and local health departments, clinicians, and private institutions carried out a compulsive epidemiologic evaluation of mortality and morbidity associated with volcanic activity following the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens. Excession morbidity were limited to transient increases to emergency room visits and hospital admissions for troumatic injuries and respiratory problems. Excessive mortality due to suffocation (76%) thermal injuries (12%), or trauma (12%) by ash and other volcanic hazards was directly proportional to the degree of environmental damage. De novo appearance of asthma was not observed, but excess adverse respiratory effects were observed in persons with preexisting respiratory disease and in heavy smokers. The volcanic ash had a mild to moderate fibrogenic potential. Community exposures to resuspended ash only transiently exceeded health limits normally applied to entire working lifetime exposures to free silica. There were no excessive exposures to toxic metals, fibrous minerals, organic chemicals, radon, or toxic gases of volcanic origin in community water supplies on air.
- Research Organization:
- National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Cincinnati, OH
- OSTI ID:
- 6896805
- Resource Relation:
- Journal Volume: 76:3
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS//MATHEMATICS, COMPUTING, AND INFORMATION SCIENCE
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
VOLCANISM
DISEASE INCIDENCE
EPIDEMIOLOGY
MORTALITY
VOLCANOES
HEALTH HAZARDS
ASHES
BURNS
ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS
ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE PATHWAY
ERUPTION
FIBROSIS
HUMAN POPULATIONS
INJURIES
METALS
MINERALS
MT ST HELENS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
PARTICLE RESUSPENSION
RADON
RESPIRATORY SYSTEM DISEASES
RESPONSE MODIFYING FACTORS
SILICA
TOBACCO SMOKES
AEROSOLS
CASCADE MOUNTAINS
CHALCOGENIDES
COLLOIDS
DISEASES
DISPERSIONS
ELEMENTS
FEDERAL REGION X
FLUIDS
GASES
HAZARDS
MOUNTAINS
NONMETALS
NORTH AMERICA
OXIDE MINERALS
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PATHOLOGICAL CHANGES
POPULATIONS
RARE GASES
RESIDUES
SILICON COMPOUNDS
SILICON OXIDES
SMOKES
SOLS
USA
WASHINGTON
560400* - Other Environmental Pollutant Effects
552000 - Public Health
500200 - Environment
Atmospheric- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (-1989)