How have people died in a volcanic eruption?

Answer 1

There are a number of causes. The most dangerous hazard from volcanoes are pyroclastic flows, which are hot, dense clouds of ash, rock, an gas that race down the sides of a volcano, burning everything they hit. These flows also carry incredible force capable of leveling even the strongest buildings. Falling ash from a volcano may also be very hot. It can get into the lungs and suffocate people. The weight may cause roofs to collapse. If the ash mixes with water either from rain or melting mountain ice it can form a mudflow called a lahar. A lahar moves like a flash flood but is as dense as concrete and can bury entire towns. Ash clouds from volcanoes may also produce lighting, which can kill people and start fires. Molten rock on the surface, called lava, is extremely hot and can easily start fires. Unlike pyroclastic flows, however, lava flows are usually slow-moving. Gasses from volcanoes are toxic and have killed people. In some cases the slopes of a volcano may give way and produce landslides. If the volcano is near water the landslides may trigger tsunamis.

Answer 2

They eject huge quantities of hot air and steam, molten rock, smoke and lava, and great rains of little burning hot rocks, all of which result in death to any creatures in the way. Volcanoes don't have a reason; they just build up pressure and then erupt. Luckily, people now know - well, some do, and some are forewarned - when this is going to happen and have the sense to get out of the way. A long. long way out of the way.

Answer 3

There are a number of ways. Contrary to popular belief, relatively few people are killed by lava flows, which are generally slow moving. Lava flows are associated with effusive or low-level explosive eruptions. The greatest hazards are associated with highly explosive eruptions. Pyroclastic flows are probably the greatest killers. These are avalanches of superheated ash, pumice, and gas that race down the sides of a volcano. They travel too fast to outrun them and conditions inside are unsurvivable. Most victims of these flows burn to death, but some are crushed by the force they carry. In 1902 pyroclastic flows from Mount Pelee killed over 33,000 people in St Pierre, Martinique, leaving only 2 survivors in the entire city. Volcanic ash itself is also dangerous. The ash consists of tiny pieces of glass. When they enter the lungs they can damage the lining and in large amounts can mix with moisture in the respiratory tract to form a kind of cement. The next threat comes from lahars. These are dense mudflows that occur when ash mixes with water from rain or glaciers melted by the heat of an eruption. When these flows stop, they harden. Lahars are especially dangerous as they can travel great distances. In 1985 Nevado del Ruiz erupted, sending lahars down nearby river channels to Armero, Columbia where over 20,000 were killed. Volcanoes also release toxic gasses. One hazard related to this is a limnic eruption, which starts as a volcano slowly releases carbon dioxide into a lake bed. In the deep water the CO2 is dissolved under pressure. However it can be released by an earthquake or landslide and silently spill out, hugging the ground as it is denser than air. It can asphyxiate any people and animals that it encounters. This happened at Lake Nyos in Cameroon, killing 1,700 people. A large enough eruption can cause a volcano to collapse in on itself. If the volcano is an island, this along with pyroclastic flows can trigger tsunamis. In 1883 the volcanic island of Krakatoa destroyed itself in a cataclysmic eruption, generating a tsunami that killer over 30,000 people. At least 3,000 more were killed directly by pyroclastic flows.
The volcanoes that produce most explosive eruptions are have steep slopes composed of a mixture of ash and cooled lava, making the sides potentially unstable an prone to landslides even when the volcano is dormant.

Answer 4

The gases can be bad for humans to breath. The ash can bury many things. Lava can cause fires, rocks can fly from the volcanoe(some as big as cars!). Mudslides can occur, smoke can cover the sky making airplanes hard to drive (some times crashing.), Lava can obviously kill you if it reached you, the volcano could collapse, and cause an earthquake making bits and pices fly through the air. Those are all the ways I know, but I have no doubt there are a great many more.

Answer 5

There are numerous hazards that come from volcanoes. The first thing that most people think of is lava or molten rock on the surface, but relatively few people have been killed by it, as it is usually slow moving and the intense heat it radiates will usually keep people at a safe distance. The most dangerous product that can occur during a volcanic eruption is a pyroclastic flow. These are superheated clouds of ash, rock, and gas that can moove down the slopes of a volcano at well over 100 mph, burning everything in their path. In at least one case a single pyroclastic flow killed more than 30,000 people. Volcanic ash is also dangerous. The ash is dangerous if inhaled and can cause serious respiritory problems. The ash can also clog and damage plane engines, potentially leading to crashes. Another hazard that has killed nearly as many people as pyroclastic flows, if not more, are lahars. Lahars are mudflows that form when volcanic ash mixes with rainwater, or water from ice melted by an eruption. These flows look like floods but are as dense as wet cement and harden once they dry out. People have also suffocated from toxic gasses emitted by volcanoes. This can be a hazard even if the vocano is not actively erupting. Eruptions that genrate large amounts of ash can also produce lighting, which has been known to kill during eruptions.

Answer 6

Lava kills them or the black ash in the air, or you could be killed because the temperature can get to over 2000 degrees

Answer 7

Normally people die from the ash and sulphur in the air. But there has been some cases where people have been burned by lava.

Answer 8

because its too bloody hot. People can also get crushed by the rocks that fly out of the erupting volcano.

Answer 9

of course you can die from volcanoes, volcanic gases and ash flows