Redoubt still huffing and puffing, threatening to blow soon

by Channel 2 News staff
Tuesday, May 5, 2009

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Shortly before 10 p.m. Tuesday seismic activity at Mount Redoubt intensified from discrete, repeating events to continuous tremor, according to the Alaska Volcano Observatory. Small ash bursts sent ash to 12,000 feet above sea level.

Once-clear webcam views of the volcano were obscured by those ash bursts for about an hour, but by 11:20 the image had cleared somewhat. A large plume could be seen rising above the crater before the cameras went dark.

Geophysicist John Power says shallow earthquake activity under the growing lava dome has been increasing at the volcano since Saturday.

Similar seismic activity was observed before eruptions this year and during the volcano's last major active period in 1989-90.

Mount Redoubt had its last explosive event April 4, sending an ash plume more than 8 miles into the air and dropping gritty ash on Kenai Peninsula communities.

The alert remained at orange as of midnight.

KTUU.com will send out alerts as events warrant.