What is the definition of "lahar"?
Marta Fenn
Dear Marta,
Lahar is an Indonesian word for a mudflow. A mudflow is a mixture of
water with volcanic material. The volcanic material can be fresh ash,
older lava flows, or older sedimentary material (boulders, cobbles) made
from volcanic material. They can be triggered by failure of crater
lakes, ash from eruptions melting snow, or heavy rainfall. On of the
largest volcanic disasters in this century was at Nevado del Ruiz where a
mudflow killed 22,000 people as it emerge from a narrow valley and
covered the valley floor.
Steve Mattox, University of North Dakota
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