Escaping the 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption: KOMO News photographer shares story of survival

On May 18, 1980, KOMO News Photographer Dave Crockett was caught in the eruption of Mount St. Helens. Afraid he would miss out on the story of a lifetime, Crockett woke up at 3 a.m. and knew he had to go, calling it “a hunch.” When he arrived, the side of Mount St. Helens collapsed and the massive eruption began. He was confused at first, then awe-struck, frightened and exhilarated at the same time. And then the mountain came after him with a churning flood of boulders, trees and mud. There was a wild race through the valley: Crockett in his news car against a 30-foot wall of death. But there was no outrunning it, so he turned up an old logging road. There was one spot in the whole valley that wasn't destroyed. It was the spot where Crockett's news car came to a stop. By now, the sky above the Mercury Monarch was a furious, seething vision of rage. Crockett left a note on the hood of the car and took off on foot. Crockett let his cameras roll as he struggled amid the choking ash and nearly pitch-black skies to stumble to survival in what is perhaps the most iconic footage of the eruption. "Dear God, whoever finds this," he said as only a sliver of light is visible. "You can't see this, I'm sure it's too dark, but I left the car behind. As you can tell probably from this picture, I'm walking towards the only light I can see at the top of a ridge." Crockett maintained a soft voice, but you can sense his desperation as he describes the scene around him while filming. "I never really thought I'd believe this or say this, but at this moment, I honest to God believe I'm dead." Crockett continued to narrate as the last bit of light disappeared. "I can feel the ash now in my eyes. It's getting very hard to breath. I'm having trouble talking. This is Hell on Earth I'm walking through." Miraculously, he made it out alive. On May 19, 1980, the day after the eruption, Crockett spoke with KOMO anchor Ed Lenderman detailing his experience and remarkable story of survival. -------------------------------------------------- For more on the story: https://komonews.com/features/komo-an... _______________ Stay up to date with our social media: KOMO News on Facebook:   / komonews   KOMO News on Twitter:   / komonews   KOMO News on Instagram:   / komo4   KOMO News on TikTok:   / komo4seattle   Subscribe to KOMO on YouTube:    / @komonews   Watch more top local news stories:    • Video   For all of the day’s top local and national news, visit http://www.komonews.com/ Watch our live newscasts and other live video at https://komonews.com/watch Download our iOS App: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/komo-... Download our Android App: https://play.google.com/store/apps/de... Have a news tip? Send it directly to us: Email us: [email protected] Call the Newsroom: 206.404.4000 KOMO News (ABC 4) provides the latest breaking news, sports, weather, traffic, and local event coverage in the Seattle and Western Washington/Puget Sound area, including Bellevue, Redmond, Renton, Kent, Tacoma, Bellingham, Yakima, and surrounding communities. Tune into ARC Seattle Monday-Friday 7-10 a.m. and 10-11 p.m. on KUNS, The CW Network. #komo #komonews #komo4 #komo4news #seattle #seattlenews #washingtonnews #volcano #history #raw #viral #mountsthelens #survival #archive #eruption #mtsthelens #1980 This video and all Sinclair Broadcast Group content archives of local news and sports coverage are available for your use. For more information, contact us at [email protected]