Background to Mount Vesuvius
Map of the surrounding area of Pompeii and the Bay of Naples.The eruption of Mount Vesuvius was not the first eruption to have ever occurred,
however, it was the most fatal. Mount Vesuvius had been extremely active in the
8th century BC, erupting about 50 times since then. There are believed to be
eruptions at least every 2,000 years. Before the devastating eruption in 79 AD,
the second worst eruption was in 1780 BC in which the volcano erupted in what
became known as an "Avellino Eruption", due to volcanic material from this
eruption being found in the town of Avellino. A majority of the people that were
killed suffered from either being knocked down by falling debris, or they were
suffocated by the noxious gases. In February 63 AD, there were several
earthquakes felt from Mount Vesuvius caused by gases being built up and trying
to be let out of the cone of the volcano. There were buildings destroyed in this
earthquake, but the townspeople still moved back to Pompeii as they had not made
the connection between the earthquakes and Mount Vesuvius.
however, it was the most fatal. Mount Vesuvius had been extremely active in the
8th century BC, erupting about 50 times since then. There are believed to be
eruptions at least every 2,000 years. Before the devastating eruption in 79 AD,
the second worst eruption was in 1780 BC in which the volcano erupted in what
became known as an "Avellino Eruption", due to volcanic material from this
eruption being found in the town of Avellino. A majority of the people that were
killed suffered from either being knocked down by falling debris, or they were
suffocated by the noxious gases. In February 63 AD, there were several
earthquakes felt from Mount Vesuvius caused by gases being built up and trying
to be let out of the cone of the volcano. There were buildings destroyed in this
earthquake, but the townspeople still moved back to Pompeii as they had not made
the connection between the earthquakes and Mount Vesuvius.
The eruption that buried a city
Several days before the earthquake, there were earth tremors surrounding the area as the pressure within the volcano began to build up again. At midday on August 24, 79 AD, after several small explosions Mount Vesuvius erupted sending a small mushroom cloud of gas and rock 20 kilometres into the sky. Almost immediately after, tremors caused buildings to collapse and Pompeii was covered in lapilli (balls of pumice). In Herculaneum, the city was immediately hit and people began to run, however in Pompeii the townspeople did not see the immediate danger and decided to hide rather than run. This proved to be fatal, as most Pompeiians had the chance to leave the city but chose not to. Over time, ash clogged the air which doubled with the noxious gases made it difficult to breathe, while a Pyroclastic Flow forced poisoned gas and rock down the side of the mountain. This pyroclastic flow reached approximately 1000 degrees Fahrenheit (approximately 537.8 degrees celsius) , resulting in those that were hiding having the liquid in their body turn into steam. Those that were not "steamed" to death were either crushed by the ash falling down, or were suffocated by the noxious gases. The people of Pompeii were buried under millions of tonnes of ash, ash that was about 16 feet deep and covered 200 square miles.
The eruption lasted 24 hours and by the time it had finished, the towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum had been completely destroyed and blanketed by pumice and ash. At least 2,000 people died on that day. The towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum were wiped from the map until 1748, when the first excavations began and people could finally begin to understand what had happened and what life was like in Ancient Rome.
The eruption lasted 24 hours and by the time it had finished, the towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum had been completely destroyed and blanketed by pumice and ash. At least 2,000 people died on that day. The towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum were wiped from the map until 1748, when the first excavations began and people could finally begin to understand what had happened and what life was like in Ancient Rome.