This article was originally published by Michael Snyder at The Economic Collapse Blog. 

Have you noticed that there has been a very alarming rise in volcanic activity in recent months?  According to Volcano Discovery, 38 volcanoes around the globe have recently erupted, and dozens more are showing signs of either unrest or minor activity.

In all my years, I have never seen anything quite like this, and I am entirely convinced that seismic activity will only increase during the months ahead.  Here in the United States, I am watching Mt. Rainier very closely, and Yellowstone is a threat that is constantly hanging over our heads.  But scientists are warning that Mount Spurr could actually be the next volcano to erupt inside U.S. territory…

Scientists have warned that a massive volcano in Alaska has a 50-50 chance erupting in the near future.

The 11,000-foot-tall Mount Spurr sits 77 miles from Anchorage— the state’s largest city which is home to nearly 300,000 people.

Over the last 10 months, it has been experiencing an unusually high amount of small earthquakes.

A full-blown eruption of Mount Spurr would be spectacular, but not much damage would occur because that area of Alaska is very lightly populated.

On the other hand, a full-blown eruption of Mount Rainier would have the potential to be cataclysmic, and we are being told that “it is only a matter of time” before it happens…

Experts say it is only a matter of time until Mount Rainier, one of the most dangerous volcanos in the US, unleashes itself upon the Pacific Northwest.

This huge, active stratovolcano looms over nearly 90,000 people living in cities such as Seattle, Tacoma, and Yakima in Washington as well as Portland, Oregon.

Most people living in Seattle and Tacoma have no idea how much danger they are in.

But those that have closely studied Mount Rainier certainly understand…

‘Mount Rainier keeps me up at night because it poses such a great threat to the surrounding communities,’ Jess Phoenix, a volcanologist and ambassador for the Union of Concerned Scientists previously said during an appearance on CNN.

When this volcano eventually blows, it won’t be lava flows or choking clouds of ash that threaten surrounding cities, but lahars: violent, fast-moving mudflows that can tear across entire communities in a matter of minutes.

For a moment, I would like for you to imagine a giant wall of super-heated mud rushing at you at 50 miles per hour.

For those that are located in the direct path, there will be little hope of escape.

But evacuation drills are regularly held anyway.  In fact, on March 21st of last year local communities conducted “the world’s largest lahar evacuation drill”…

On March 21, 2024, more than 45,000 students in communities south of Seattle and west of Mount Rainier participated in the world’s largest lahar evacuation drill. Although the Regional Lahar Evacuation Drill is held every two years, this year’s was the largest ever. The East Pierce Interlocal Coalition (EPIC) Emergency Management Team coordinates the drill, with support from local government officials, school districts, first responders, emergency managers, volunteers, and state and federal agencies, such as the U.S. Geological Survey. Students from Puyallup, Sumner-Bonney Lake, Orting, White River and Carbonado, Washington participated in the event.

Because Mount Rainier is so close to highly populated areas, there won’t be much time to warn local residents.

The super-heated mud will move incredibly fast, and it will show no mercy.

Today, much of Tacoma and much of South Seattle are actually built on “100-foot-thick ancient mudflows from eruptions of Mount Rainier”…

‘Tacoma and South Seattle are built on 100-foot-thick ancient mudflows from eruptions of Mount Rainier,’ Phoenix said. This is a strong indication that these populous cities lie within the path of potential lahars generated by a future eruption.

Of course the Pacific Northwest is also facing the threat of a giant tsunami that is produced as a result of a massive rupture along the Cascadia Subduction Zone…

Scientists are sounding the alarm after a series of earthquakes rocked the West Coast last week, warning a major seismic event is ‘inevitable.’

Earthquakes trigger tsunamis by causing the ocean floor to rise or fall, pushing water above to form a massive wave.

But it isn’t just California at risk, Washington sits along the Cascadia Subduction Zone that is capable of a ‘megaquake’, they said.

One scientist that has studied the Cascadia Subduction Zone very closely is warning that a large enough earthquake could potentially “generate tsunami waves up to 80 feet tall”…

Harold Tobin, a co-author of the paper and the director of the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network, said that although the data will help fine-tune projections, it doesn’t change a tough-to-swallow reality of living in the Pacific Northwest.

“We have the potential for earthquakes and tsunamis as large as the biggest ones we’ve experienced on the planet,” said Tobin, who is also a University of Washington professor. “Cascadia seems capable of generating a magnitude 9 or a little smaller or a little bigger.”

A quake that powerful could cause shaking that lasts about five minutes and generate tsunami waves up to 80 feet tall. It would damage well over half a million buildings, according to emergency planning documents.

Can you imagine what that would look like?

We are talking about a natural disaster that would be absolutely unparalleled in our history.

Of course, Yellowstone has the potential to produce a disaster that would be even larger than that.

If a full-blown eruption of the Yellowstone Supervolcano were to occur, everything within 50 miles “would be all but annihilated,” virtually the entire country would be covered in thick ash, and the whole world would experience a volcanic winter for an extended period of time…

While the blast would kill thousands and send rivers of molten lava pouring up to 40 miles (64km) from the eruption site, this would only be the start of the devastation.

Experts predict that every town in a 50-mile (80km) radius would be all but annihilated by the same pyroclastic flows that created the petrified figures of Pompeii.

Meanwhile, the United States would be blanketed in a thick layer of choking ash as the world plunges into a volcanic winter which could last for years.

A volcanic winter caused by a full-blown eruption of Yellowstone would cause a dramatic decline in global temperatures, and that would make it extremely difficult to grow much of anything…

Professor Mather says that some estimates suggest global cooling of around 5°C (9°F) for several years with temperatures potentially falling up to 10°C (18°F) in the first year.

A recent pre-print study conducted by the Arctic University of Norway suggests that the maximum cooling a volcanic event could produce is 12°C (21.6°F).

If that were the case, countries around the world could experience exceptionally cold winters and could face widespread crop shortages as harvests failed.

Outside of the United States, the Phlegraean Fields are being rocked by hundreds of earthquakes…

Seismologists, volcanologists, and officials from Naples are racing against the clock as they implement school closures, set up emergency shelters, and plan evacuation routes for residents living within the region’s Campi Flegiri area, also known as the Phlegraean Fields, after over 600 earthquakes have been recorded since Saturday, with magnitudes ranging from M2.0 to M3.9; the most and the strongest the region has seen in 40 years.

According to data from the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV), the town of Pozzuoli is the nearest populated area closest to the epicenter of the earthquake swarm, prompting officials to close schools there until further notice.

Many years ago, I had the opportunity to go to the town of Pozzuoli, and I also had the opportunity to visit the ruins of Pompeii.

We have seen cataclysmic disasters in this region before, and I will be carefully monitoring future developments.

Meanwhile, Santorini has recently been shaken by more than 20,000 earthquakes…

Professor Efthymios Lekkas, head of the state-run Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization, warned on Sunday that seismic activity on Santorini is expected to continue for an extended period.

“It will be a prolonged sequence lasting several weeks, possibly even a few months. This type of seismic activity does not subside easily,” he stated in an interview with public broadcaster ERTNews.

Lekkas further explained that the total number of tremors has already exceeded 20,000 earthquakes.

We haven’t seen this much shaking in southern Europe in a long, long time.

Is all of this shaking leading up to something really big?

Lastly, I can’t do an article like this and leave Mount Fuji out.

It is relatively quiet for now, but the last time it erupted it left a thick layer of ash in central Tokyo…

The 3,776-meter Mt. Fuji last erupted in 1707. At the time, eruptions continued for 16 days, leaving a layer of volcanic ash about 4 cm thick in locations in current-day central Tokyo, according to historical records.

The next time Mount Fuji erupts, Tokyo will not be so fortunate.

As I have detailed in my books, we live at a time when seismic activity is on the rise.

What we have experienced so far is just the tip of the iceberg.

There will be one apocalyptic event after another during the years ahead, and I hope that you are preparing accordingly.

Michael’s new book entitled “Why” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.

About the Author: Michael Snyder’s new book entitled “Why” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com. He has also written eight other books that are available on Amazon.com, including “Chaos,” “End Times,” “7 Year Apocalypse”, “Lost Prophecies Of The Future Of America,” “The Beginning Of The End,” and “Living A Life That Really Matters.”  When you purchase any of Michael’s books you help to support the work that he is doing.  You can also get his articles by email as soon as he publishes them by subscribing to his Substack newsletter.  Michael has published thousands of articles on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream, and The Most Important News, and he always freely and happily allows others to republish those articles on their own websites.  These are such troubled times, and people need hope.  John 3:16 tells us about the hope that God has given us through Jesus Christ: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  If you have not already done so, we strongly urge you to invite Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior today.