Near Mount St. Helens, Local Daily Prepares to Go With the Flow

By: Joe Strupp The Daily News in Longview, Wash., won a Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of the deadly 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption. Now, the volcano's latest activity is sparking both memories and a scramble for daily news planning.

Located about 30 miles southwest of the geological hot spot, The Daily News is the closest daily paper to the volcano, according to editor Cal FitzSimmons, who joined the paper in August. He said the 15-person news staff has been on red alert for an eruption since last week.

"We feel an obligation to cover this like no on else," FitzSimmons said, citing the previous Pulitzer-winning effort. "But it is a challenge because we don't know what will happen or when."

FitzSimmons said the volcanic activity forced him to bring three reporters in over the weekend on overtime in case an eruption occurred. "We have to sit down two or more times a day to see how we can cover it as it changes," Fitzsimmons said. "We are ready to go full press."

The paper also has hired private planes to fly photographers over the smoldering site four times since last week, at a cost of $175 to $400 per hour. The story also has caused the paper to add about 450 extra copies to its single-copy sales run, but Fitzsimmons had no information Monday on how many extra copies had sold.

The memories of both the 1980 eruption and the subsequent Pulitzer victory remain strong in the newsroom, which includes four editorial staffers who worked at the paper during the previous eruption.

"This reminds me a lot of that build-up," said City Editor Andre Stepankowsky, who was a lead reporter during the 1980 event. "The mountain had a build-up of steam sort of like this for two months before. But it is hard to fathom something like that occurring again."

Stepankowsky, who said he had just hiked the mountain a few weeks ago, recalls coverage continuing for months after the May 1980 blow. "It was exhilarating and shocking," he told E&P. "I wasn't scared, just more shocked by the immensity of it."

The coverage turned into a regular beat for Stepankowsky, who said Mount St. Helens remained his primary assignment for years as the after-effects, ranging from flooding to tourism, were regular stories. "I think I was one of the only volcano reporters for eight years," he said.