18 volcanoes in the US considered to be ‘very high’ threats

When the prophet Joel spoke of the events leading up to the Coming Day of the Lord, he saw columns of smoke, blood, and fire (Joel 2:30-31). The verse has always struck me because it seems to be referring to an increase in volcanic activity in the end times, characterized by that volcanic trademark, a…

Dean Smith

October 26, 2023

2–3 minutes

blog, Joel 2:30-31, Volcanic activity in US, volcano apocalypse, volcanos in the end times

A recent swarm of earthquakes at the Long Valley Caldera, a supervolcano located in California, has experts concerned it is becoming active.
Credit: S.R. Brantley, United States Geological Survey, Wikipedia, Public Domain

When the prophet Joel spoke of the events leading up to the Coming Day of the Lord, he saw columns of smoke, blood, and fire (Joel 2:30-31).

The verse has always struck me because it seems to be referring to an increase in volcanic activity in the end times, characterized by that volcanic trademark, a column of smoke.

But equally important is that the word columns is in the plural meaning there will be several eruptions and the blood and fire also indicate the resulting explosions will result in death.

The Daily Mail recently wrote an article about the 169 volcanos that can be found in the territorial US and the 18 that are of particular concern to the US Geological Service (USGS).

These 18, classified as high threats, are found in Alaska, California, Oregon, Hawaii, and American Samoa.

Thirteen are located in highly populated areas and the remaining five would disrupt air traffic if they erupted.

According to the USGS, Hawaii’s Kīlauea which erupted in January this year is considered the most dangerous of the 18.

Also included in the list are:

Mount Rainer, Washington
Mt. St. Helen’s, Washington
Mount Baker, Washington
Glacier Peak, Washington
Redoubt Volcano, Alaska
Akutan Island, Alaska
Mount Shasta, California
Lassen, California
Mount Hood, Oregon
Three Sisters, Oregon
Newberry, Oregon
Crater Lake, Oregon
Mauna Loa, Hawaii
Makushin Volcano, Alaska
Mount Spurr, Alaska
Augustine Volcano, Alaska

There are also three super-volcanos in the US (20 worldwide), and if any one of them were to erupt, it would have a catastrophic worldwide impact:

The Yellowstone Caldera located in Northwest Wyoming is 43 miles (ca. 69 km) by 28 miles (ca. 45 km) wide. It is constantly being monitored by USGS as it’s overdue for an eruption;
Long Valley Caldera located in Eastern California has recently been hit by a swarm of earthquakes which is an indicator of increasing activity, and
Valles Caldera is located in Northern New Mexico.