This riveting popular book provides all the details of the human
experiences left out of the more picture-oriented titles on
volcanoes. It still has good colour photographs, maps and other
illustrations, the human stories, based on exhaustive research and
make for exciting reading. From the eruption of Vesuvius in 79AD,
to the more recent eruptions at Mount St Helens in the USA and
Pinatubo in the Philippines, Scarth reveals the different types of
volcanoes and how scientists, political leaders and the general
public have slowly (often too slowly) learned to respect this
fundamental power of the Earth. Scarth has written two other books
on volcanoes, including the Savage Earth (1997) based on the
award-winning TV documentary series. Highly recommended for adults
and older children. (Kirkus UK)
Volcanic eruptions are the most spectacular displays in the natural
world. They also present humanity with devastating environmental
disasters. This enthralling book describes fifteen of the most
remarkable volcanic eruptions across the centuries and, using rare
firsthand accounts, analyzes their impact on the people in their
paths. In 79 a.d. Vesuvius produced the most violent eruption
recorded in European history. The eruption of Etna in 1669 marked
the first known attempt to divert a lava-flow. In 1783, the
eruption of Laki indirectly killed a fifth of the Icelandic
population and sent a blue haze over Europe. The eruption of
Krakatau in 1883 drowned most of its victims and destroyed much of
the island as well. In 1980 Mount St. Helens produced a new type of
eruption and scythed down a majestic forest. Alwyn Scarth explores
these and other eruptions, reconstructing the physical experience
of the disaster, its origins, explosion, and aftermath, and
interpreting (in many cases for the first time in English)
eyewitness accounts that bring their own vividness to the unfolding
drama. The accounts tell of fear, panic, miscalculation, and
inefficiency as well as emergency organization, self-sacrifice,
religious fervor, and heroism, revealing how each affected
population handled-or mishandled-its crisis. Scarth's riveting
survey shows that technology and volcanic surveillance have made
enormous strides during the present century. But volcanoes remain
indomitable: no one has yet learned how an eruption can be stopped.
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