Page 51 - Reading Success B6

The deadliest volcanic eruption in history occurred on April 10, 1815, when Mount
Tambora, a long-dormant volcano on the Indonesian island of Sumbawa, unexpectedly
exploded with a force ten times more powerful than that of the famous Krakatau. Tambora
had been rumbling for days, but no one was worried since the volcano had been inactive for
so long. Suddenly, fire blasted from the peak of the volcano, and a column of smoke, gas,
dust, and rock rose twenty-five miles into the sky. Fiery ash raced down the volcano's slopes,
burning and destroying everything in its path. The 10,000 residents of Sumbawa were killed
instantly. Major eruptions continued until mid-July, and ash rained down for weeks. Houses
hundreds of miles away collapsed under the weight of falling debris, which also destroyed
crops and forests. The volcano was identified by scientists as the most destructive explosion
on Earth in the past 10,000 years. The Indonesian people were not the only ones affected by
Mount Tambora's eruption. This natural disaster had an impact on the entire planet.

Winds carried away massive quantities of sulfurous gases mixed with ash and dust that
encircled the Earth. The debris blocked the sunlight and was partly responsible for
unseasonably cool temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere during 1816, which became
known as the year without a summer. In the United States, states as far south as Virginia got
snowfall as late as July. In Europe and Great Britain, the summer of 1816 was damp and
dark. Europe received much more rain than usual; in Ireland, it rained constantly for eight
weeks.

These climate changes led to widespread crop failure. In China and Tibet, cold weather
killed rice crops, and floods destroyed other crops. The excessive rain killed Ireland's potato
crop, as well as the corn and wheat crops of Europe. Crops failed in America as well, 10,000
miles from Mount Tambora. Retired President Thomas Jefferson had such a poor corn crop in
1816 that he had to apply for a $1,000 loan. These crop failures led to famine, hunger, and
disease throughout the world. In Indonesia alone, an estimated 90,000 people died of
starvation. Hunger also contributed to the spread of typhus, which killed thousands as it
spread through Britain in late 1816.

The bad weather and crop failures affected migration in the United States and contributed
to the establishment of two new states. The cold snap of 1816 spurred many New England
farmers to seek a more favorable climate in the Midwest. In 1816 and 1817, twice the usual
number of people emigrated from Vermont. The increase in the Midwestern population helped

Main Idea

What is the main idea of this story?

a. the widespread damage of the eruption of Mount Tambora

b. the failure of American crops in 1816
c. the damage to Indonesia caused by the eruption of Mount Tambora

d. what causes volcanic eruptions

54_Reading Success B 6