Mount Lamington is an andesitic

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a conical volcano built up by many layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with a summit crater and per ...

in the

Oro Province Oro Province, formerly (and officially still) Northern Province, is a coastal province of Papua New Guinea. The provincial capital is Popondetta. The province covers 22,800 km2, and has 176,206 inhabitants (2011 census). The province shares la ...

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

. The forested peak of the volcano had not been recognised as such until its devastating

eruption Several types of volcanic eruptions—during which lava, tephra (ash, lapilli, volcanic bombs and volcanic blocks), and assorted gases are expelled from a volcanic vent or fissure—have been distinguished by volcanologists. These are often ...

in 1951 that caused about 3,000 deaths. The volcano rises to 1680 meters above the coastal plain north of the

Owen Stanley Range Owen Stanley Range is the south-eastern part of the central mountain-chain in Papua New Guinea. Its highest point is Mount Victoria at , while its most prominent peak is Mount Suckling. History Owen Stanley Range was seen in 1849 by Captain Owe ...

. A summit complex of lava domes and crater remnants rises above a low-angle base of volcaniclastic deposits that are dissected by radial valleys. A prominent broad "avalanche valley" extends northward from the breached crater. The mountain was named after

Charles Cochrane-Baillie, 2nd Baron Lamington Charles Wallace Alexander Napier Cochrane-Baillie, 2nd Baron Lamington, (29 July 1860 – 16 September 1940), was a British politician and colonial administrator who served as Governor of Queensland from 1896 to 1901, and Governor of Bombay fro ...

who was

Governor of Queensland The governor of Queensland is the representative in the state of Queensland of the monarch of Australia. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia at the national level, the governor Governors of the Australian states, performs c ...

1951 eruption

Mount Lamington began to erupt on the night of January 18, 1951. Three days later there was a violent

when a large part of the northern side of the mountain was blown away and devastating

pyroclastic flows A pyroclastic flow (also known as a pyroclastic density current or a pyroclastic cloud) is a fast-moving current of hot gas and volcanic matter (collectively known as tephra) that flows along the ground away from a volcano at average speeds of b ...

poured from the gap for a considerable time afterwards. The area of extreme damage extended over a radius of about 12 km, while people near Higaturu, 14 km from the volcano, were killed by the blast or burned to death. The pyroclastic flows and subsequent eruptions of dust and ash which filled streams and tanks, caused the death of some 3,000 people, and considerable damage. More than 5,000 people were made homeless.One figure for total number of deaths is 3,466 people, see . Rescue parties which arrived on the scene were hampered by suffocating

pumice Pumice (), called pumicite in its powdered or dust form, is a volcanic rock that consists of highly vesicular rough-textured volcanic glass, which may or may not contain crystals. It is typically light-colored. Scoria is another vesicular vol ...

dust and

sulphur Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formula ...

ous fumes, and hot ashes on the ground. The advance post of relief workers at

Popondetta Popondetta (sometimes spelled Popondota) is the capital of Oro (Northern) Province in Papua New Guinea. Popondetta is a city. In 1951 the city became the focus of relief efforts after nearby Mount Lamington erupted and killed 4,000 people. P ...

was threatened with destruction by other eruptions during the several days following. Further tremors and explosions occurred during February. As late as 5 March a major eruption occurred which threw large pieces of the volcanic dome as far as three kilometers and caused a flow of pumice and rocks for a distance of 14 km, the whole time being so hot as to set fire to every tree in its path. The pyroclastic flow created from this eruption destroyed about 200 square kilometers of land.

Volcanologist A volcanologist, or volcano scientist, is a geologist who focuses on understanding the formation and eruptive activity of volcanoes. Volcanologists frequently visit volcanoes, sometimes active ones, to observe and monitor volcanic eruptions, col ...

and former

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

Warrant Officer, Tony Taylor, studied the volcano during the eruption cycle. His work is credited to saving lives by informing rescue parties when it was safe to go into the area. In 1952 he was awarded a

George Cross The George Cross (GC) is the highest award bestowed by the British government for non-operational gallantry or gallantry not in the presence of an enemy. In the British honours system, the George Cross, since its introduction in 1940, has been ...

for his efforts.

Notes

;Footnotes ;Citations

References

* * Taylor GA. The 1951 eruption of Mount Lamington, Papua. Bureau of Mineral Resources, Geology and Geophysics, Department of National Development (Australia) 1958; Bulletin 38.

External links

Collection of photographs and colour slides from the 1951 eruption of Mt Lamington, Papua New Guinea
/ Albert Speer - held and partially digitised by the National Library of Australia {{DEFAULTSORT:Lamington Active volcanoes Mountains of Papua New Guinea Stratovolcanoes of Papua New Guinea 1951 natural disasters 1951 in Papua New Guinea Natural disasters in Papua New Guinea Oro Province 20th-century volcanic events Holocene stratovolcanoes 1951 disasters in Papua New Guinea

1951 eruption

See also

Notes

References

External links