I was a Hospital Corpsman on the USS Proteus and took part in Operation Fiery Vigil. It was a shock to return to Subic which we had just visited in May and now it was total destruction. As a repair ship we immediately started fixing equipment and clearing roads. When the ash was falling it reminded me of Chicago during a major snow storm. It was everywhere, in our lungs, it plugged air filters on vehicles and without precautions it could be tracked everywhere. It was abrasive and caused many breathing problems. Clark was totally shut down and Subic along with the naval air station at Cubi point were in dire straits. We conducted medical and dental clinics for the Filipino population when ever possible and they were extremely grateful.
‘Insidious’ is the only proper word for volcanic ash I can think of. We visited Mount Unzen in Japan some time after the eruption. It was fairly quiet by then, but ash plumes started strengthening around the time of our visit. There was ash in the gutters of the town of Unzen-and we were awakened by the owner of the inn we stayed at pushing several inches. ash off his roof. Abrasive and potentially corrosive, it doesn’t do engines any favors, certainly.
I was there as a Marine for all the events discussed and the whole operation. Good coverage of the events. The problem was indeed ash combined with the rain. Locals unprepared. We were providing aid in town immediately and throughout the recovery.
Thank You for your service. You are part of the Greatest Generation, and I wanted to thank you for your comment. It helped The History Guy's great true story come alive for me. God Bless You ❤️🇺🇲
I was a junior officer onboard USS PELELIU during Fiery Vigil. When we arrived at Subic Bay we were using Night Vision goggles on the bridge to attempt to peer through the falling ash. As an LHA we off loaded Marines and engineering equipment and on loaded civilians and the entire maternity ward from the base hospital. I have lost count of how many births took place on our transit to Cebu. A number of buildings collapsed on base as the ash mixed with torrential rain resulted in raining cement. On top of the weight, the ash was very caustic knocking out electrical systems base wide.
I was 26 years old when Pinatubo erupted. That event, coinciding as it did with the arrival of a major typhoon, led to a literal forty days and forty nights of torrential rain across Luzon. It changed the weather all across the world -- I especially remember CNN footage of a bemused Bedouin leading his camel through the normally dry and barren Sahara, wondering at all the green stuff coming out of the ground! Reynaldo Punongbayan was hailed as a hero for sticking to his guns and insisting that Pinatubo's environs be evacuated. He did indeed save untold thousands of lives -- the casualties noted by THG mostly came from a tribe who stubbornly refused to leave, holing up in a cave when the eruption began and subsequently being overwhelmed by the ash and lahar.
My wife was a kid in Porac, just south of Angeles City when the eruption happened. The stories she has told me of that time are worse than any horror movie I have ever seen. Her dad saved pictures taken then. My heart absolutely melts with sympathy when I see her with a blend of confusion and sheer terror from that time. She buries her head deep into my shoulder for reassuring comfort every night as a result of this experience.
I was in the Air Force in Korea at the time. We received units, people and equipment from Clark. Most of the equipment had to be discarded - it was ashed-out and useless. One of my coworkers was one of the 300 cadre left behind to get equipment out, household goods shipped, etc. they cleared a minimum operating strip at Clark so a senior DoD official could fly in and assess the situation. He didn’t make it off the airstair before he declared we were out of there. Didn’t matter how the Philippine senate voted, our decision was already made. Anyone on leave or TDY from Clark were told to go to the nearest Air Force base and sign in as permanent party. Guys on leave in North Dakota did not go to Minot, they bought commercial tickets to warm-weather bases and signed in there. Fun times.
It bothers me how so much takes place around the world, yet the U.S. legacy media focus battles only one or two political subjects. I confess appreciation for the Internet so I know what takes place around the globe. I thank you, Lance, for reminding us to remember there is more than our little part of the world -- yet it impacts us.
I remember this and the closing of Clark and Subic Bay. A bunch of us were sitting around the O Club talking about how they wanted us out, but the Philippines didn't think about how hard their economy would crash without the U.S. military there. They got their wish, their economy tanked, and the Chinese started looking at them. 20 years later they were begging us to come back.
I'm sure what you say is true. But the Philippine flag that flys over the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority today is the LARGEST flag I've ever seen on a flagpole. The only decent sidewalks I saw in the PI were the ones built by the Navy at Subic. That said, even 30+ years later a sophisticated man like THG can call the American payments to the PI government "aid" rather than "rent". If that signals the attitude US officials had in negotiations then it's no wonder they weren't successful. It may be a small thing but lease payments aren't ever thought of as "aid" in any sort of respectful business negotiations.
@@johndrennan5933 Their huge flag isn't doing much to protect them from Chinese fishing fleets in their territorial waters. That huge flag isn't doing anything to keep the Chinese Coast Guard from telling the Philippine navy to go pound sand when they sail around unstopped in their territorial waters. The Chinese aren't doing any negotiations, they are sailing in and taking what they want.
It's weird how us Americans feel so superior to other nations and look down those, like the Phillipines, who don't enjoy our permanent presence; yet, I rather doubt any of my fellow Americans--especially the Keyboard Patriots,--would look kindly on other nations having permanent bases in the US. Graciousness and humility are apparently not American traits, and judging by the comments some have posted, neither is respectfulness.
Just for fun, here's some minor yet incredible facts you didn't include. The eruption cloud was much taller than 12 miles on the day of the main eruption, June 15 1991. According to the USGS, the eruption column was "more than 40 km (28 miles) high." Although that pulse of the eruption lasted just 3 hours, the volcano spent 18 of the 24 hours that day in eruption and the "climax" itself was 8 hours of essentially continuous eruption. It also removed the top of the mountain, shortening it from 1,745m to 1,486m with the formation of a 2.5km wide caldera. But the human impacts you focused on are much more important than this stuff. Great video! I'm old enough to remember this one, although I was just a kid at the time.
I had a relative in the navy tell me that the day before the blast, a scientist was running by the base commander and asked if he had jam in his back pocket. Asking why, he replied, if you don't leave soon, your a$$ is toast.
I remember this. My wife and I were stationed in Yokosuka Japan. Circumstances led to me planning a trip to Subic Bay for the following month! Then I saw the news and scrapped those plans!
I was aboard the USS Nimitz when this happened. We had just left Subic enroute to the Persian Gulf in support of Desert Storm. The eruption of Pinatubo and the subsequent disruption in fleet logistics support meant that we didn't get supplies and mail for 6 weeks.
I'm currently living 20 minutes south of Clark (an hour east of Subic), in San Fernando, Pampanga Province, and the Pinatubo eruption is still fresh in resident's memories. However, good cleanup was performed on Clark, and the grounds, buildings and facilities are good. The International Airport of Clark is becoming a popular point of departure and arrival for travelers! I sure hope Pinatubo never decides to act up again, in my, or Wife's lifetime! We just moved into our new house!
What do you know! I was on a ship headed to Damam (sp) to pick up some equipment and bring it back to the US. We got diverted to Okinawa to pick up "road equipment" and take it to Subic Bay, to help clear the "ash" (that was about 3 ft deep!). I had been told for many years that I should go sometime, I'd love it. Needless to say, I did not love it! Couldn't wait to leave! 😊
I was a crewman on one of the USN ships that raced to rescue and evacuate people when the volcano exploded. We made several trips from Subic to Cebu transporting people…even their pets.
My wife, two kids and my golden retriever may have been one of your passengers. My wife couldn’t say enough good about how the Navy treated our family. Thank you!
@ We even had a Great Dane on board on one of the passages. All the crew(when not on watch) slept topside on the weather decks so that the women and child had abed(rack) to sleep in during each three day portage. They all had hot meals in the mess decks…we had battle rations. The relief in their faces made it all worthwhile..they had been through doomsday in their eyes.
My mother, my brother, my 2 malamutes, and I may have been passengers. Just depends on your ship. We were on the USS Lake Champlain. The navy members were more than welcoming of us. I loved the rec room in the rough seas. It was like a roller coaster.
I have a very dear friend that I was in the US Navy Seabees with that participated in the disassembly of the bases after the eruption. The stories he told were quite scary.
I was at Clark when it happened. I remember it being black as night during the day and raining rocks. I remember and thank the Navy Exchange manager at Subic, who shared his house with me and the guys, the crew of the USS Midway who sailed us to Cebu, and the Air Force family who shared their house with us on Guam, even if it was only for a well needed shower and a nights sleep.
This video makes me wonder where my brain was back in my youth. I was in the Air Force at the time of these events. I remember the eruption of Mount Pinatubo. But, as to the surrounding issues you talked about, I remember nothing. Thanks for the excellent video.
I remember watching that eruption on television when my family was stationed at Carswell Air Force Base in Ft. Worth Texas. It worried a lot of the base community because a lot of people knew people stationed at Clark or Subic Bay, the military community felt like a small family when we realized how interconnected we were with events on the other side of the world. That feeling grew during Desert Shield & Desert Storm. As a military brat I’ll never forget the sense of military family we had. I tried numerous times & numerous ways to serve especially after 9-11 but kept getting medically denied, sometimes for the very medications military doctors had prescribed for me starting at Carswell AFB.
My dad was in the Army Air Forces and was stationed at Clark Field in 1939 to his capture in 1942. He said they would go hiking on Mt Pinatubo on the weekends before the war.
Operation Fiery Vigil really shows the importance of preparedness. Imagine having to organize an evacuation of that scale under such extreme conditions
The Navy has plans for every type of event. They were great when I was aboard the Lincoln. I was on their last or third trip from Subic to Cebu. I was assigned to sleep in pilots quarters. I got into my upper birth and the pilots were sleeping on the floor. I couldn't sleep with them on the floor, so I went to the ready room to sleep and gave a pilot back his rack. They were doing out laundry on the ship and the crew had not washed their clothes for 2 weeks.
I remember on local news someone's son was there and said it was the same smell as Mt St Helens May 18, 1980. I live in WA and collected a clear plastic tube of ash off my car hood, which is in my desk drawer less than a foot from my keyboard. Paid attention to news about it because I had been to the Navy Base many times during Vietnam and one trip to Clark. Now stuff I remember is "HISTORY!!!!!"
Thank you so much for this History. I was at Subic Bay and rotated home in February 1991. My time in the PI was some of my most memorable. I was 20 yo, and in the US Navy. I remember the communists being an issue and the PI military fighting them across the bay. Theresa Ramirez.. I will never forget You. Now I know the.. Rest of the Story. I am told there is an American cemetery still at Clark AB...and American retired Military still take care of it. That info is over 10 years old now.
To all veterans and active duty, thanks for your service. I was stationed in Norfolk/Virginia Beach at Fleet Combat Training Center Atlantic Dam Neck Operations Specialist A School at the time. I visited Subic Bay in 1986 while deployed on USS Cape Cod AD 43. Still remember the name of the young lady I spent time with during the 4 day port visit, Belinda Rojo
I went to tech school with the 2 airmen that were murdered. They were on temporary duty from Kunsan AB Korea. I was stationed at Osan AB when they were murdered. I did temporary duty at Clark the previous December and stayed at the same hotel.
I was there when it happened. It was horrific. I had been downtown with a friend clubbing, we heard the shots but assumed it was fireworks. By the time we arrived at the hotel they were lying in the street and the killers had run off.
I was stationed there at the time. There were three airmen involved. They were negotiating ‘trike’ fares (kind of like a tuk tuk) when they were ambushed in the dark. Two airmen were shot outright. The third panicked and ran toward the shooters who were in the shadows. This may have saved his life as they got spooked and ran.
I was an aircrewman on the Marine Corps CH-53's, aboard the USS Midway. It was quite the operation. It was an absolute mess in Subic and Cubi Point. I can only imagine how bad it was at Clark.
This isn't history, it was a part of my life. I was stationed on Guam and we received the majority of evacuees. The entire island was mobilized to support and help them on their journey back to the states.
@@jonniez62we were evacuated with our dog to Guam. My wife and I were asked by an Airman there if we would like to use his spare bedroom during our.stay . We were so grateful for the extreme kindness. Our dog was kenneled due to Guam's rabies quarantine and the Airman helped us visit the dog as he could see how anxious we were to find him.
On day one, a young sailor hobbled over to the mini mart on Andy South and asked for help to get up to the clinic on Anderson. I was more than happy to drive several people to the base for medical needs. He had jumped off something on the Lincoln and had been dealing with it for a couple of days. I suspect he broke it.
Thank You. I spent a lot of time at Subic and flew in and out of Clark. I remember there were slot machines in the terminal at Clark.....................Jay
I remember this. Pinatubo would would come to be, in my mind, one the most extraordinary events in the last half century to impact US agriculture. This combined with burning Kuwait oil wells, instigated an atmospheric alteration of weather patterns affecting a large area of the crop producing areas for several years to follow. Even more so than Mt. St. Helen's May 1980 blast.
Just think, this was still less than 1/10th the size of the largest eruptions in recorded history. But those eruptions, such as the 1815 eruption of Mt Tambora (which this same channel has a good video on) hit in eras before modern communications, so someone in 1815 in Nebraska would likely have no idea that a volcano in southeast Asia blew up. They would then certainly have been be extremely confused and scared when 1816 was unusually cold with wild weather pattern and temperature swings and snow even in the middle of summer in places like New York, earning 1816 the title of "the year without a summer." I am both extremely curious how an even larger event than Pinatubo would impact the modern world, but I know it would be really bad so I also hope to never experience it.
@@Lessinath Agreed. I am well aware of the Tambora event, but chose not to go there because of lack of personal experience. I’m sure my great great Grandpa could enlighten me. St. Helen's and Pinatubo did however impact and definitely change how I farm and grow crops. More recently, the Hunga Tonga event of 2022 has had some repercussions as well. Lately, experts are taking note of slight increased activity of the Yellowstone caldera. That next event would be a dinosaur killer too.
@@LGR605 Yellowstone would be a big problem, but not a mass extinction level event for the whole world, just like its past eruptions haven't done that either. Regionally devastating and global impacts, but not enough to be a major extinction event. But that's assuming it erupts, which as a geologist is not something I am convinced is coming any time soon. If it does erupt, that is also assuming it does so explosively. Most of Yellowstone's eruptions are actually big, sticky, rhyolite lava flows with minimal explosivity. The gas emissions from this lava are still an issue, but beyond the local area it would be an inconvenience, not a disaster.
One Financial quarter later, the Philippine government discovered that they had shot themselves in the foot by removing a major source of income with the spending of the personnel & dependents no longer based and quartered there
Which they were warned about ahead of time, but, politicians would never let things like the consequences of their own actions get in the way of the bad policies they want to push. After all, even in the Philippines the politicians are almost all very wealthy, and are thus largely insulated from those consequences. So why would they care?
@@Lessinath Many average Filipinos were still very angry over the US supporting the Ferdinand Marcos dictatorship for decades right up to a popular uprising finally overthrowing him
@@scottabc72 Justified anger, you won't hear me supporting the US on that BS. Or any of the other times all over the world they've done the same or even worse things. It still hurt them more than it helped them to kick the US out.
Shot in the foot, you mean, with the defective ammunitions and weapons sent by the US as payment for the bases lease? And financial? Wasn't the US paying all in credits, like 2nd hand materiale, and not cold hard cash, like the US$?
That summer was cooler than average in Michigan. I was looking forward to a nice, warm summer after a winter of Lake Effect snow and sub zero temps, but was sorely disappointed.
The Mt. Punatubo eruption coincided with my birthday. It was a dark and gloomy day as ash fall reached as far as Manila, about 200 kilometers from the Zambales mountain range side of the volcano.
My uncle was one of the last people out of Subic Bay. He was a CPO on the Nimitz. He pretty much turned out the lights before Pinatubo heaved it's contents on the navy base.
After Pinatubo erupted, the worldwide temperature dropped by 1°c. This doesn't sound like much, but that winter, in the Northern Hemisphere, here in canada, we experienced extended periods of -40°c, and where I was working on a drilling rig, at Bear Canyon Alberta, near the Alberta British Columbia border, we saw -64°c, and extended periods below -50°c. In the 25 years I worked as an oilwell driller, I have not seen colder temperatures. Mount Pinatubo was to blame for this. Volcanic activity could very well be the event that can test the resilience of civilization on this planet. Man, it was cold.
I was aboard USNS Passumpsic T-AO 107, a Military Sealift oiler, at Alava Pier at Subic. We'd arrived from the first Gulf War earlier in the week. We ended up hauling a large number of evacuees to Cebu the week following the eruption. The eruption made me think of a dress rehearsal for the Apocalypse. Oddly we returned immediately to Subic to clean tanks in prep for eventual layup. When we were about 50% done we went to Yokohama, to finish up at West Pier, next to the MSC Far East Office. My first trip with MSC after spending 11 years in the Navy. An auspicious start.
I was into hobby photography when the Mt. Pinatubo eruption occured. I still remember how the ash in the skies ruined sky photography for several years, worldwude, turning the nice clear blue into a washed out grey. I had to use a blue sky filter on outdoor photography. 😮
I had orders to Clark when the volcano blew up. I was on administrative hold for months before they determined what was to happen to me. In the end they just cancelled the orders and that was it. Charles
Reminds me of that line from Operation Petticoat: Lieutenant Holden (played by Tony Curtis) is an operator; during an enemy raid he says "In confusion there is opportunity!" as he races out to pillage and pilfer supplies and stores!
I worked at NAVSTA Subic Bay from 1986 until Mt. Pinatubo blew up. We had to evacuate folks from Clark Air Base first and I caught the last boat out, the USS Abraham Lincoln. It was fairly livable until the typhoon hit which sucked all of the ash moving east and dumped it right where I lived.
Philippines was considered good duty in '91. It was also considered "good duty" in '41. Till the unpleasantness shortly followed. Thanks for the history of Clark AFB. I lived thru Mt St Helens 2nd blow and the ash clogged everything, especially drains (since it was dry). When the first rains came, unexpected flooding from backed up lines was a YUGE problem, totally unforeseen. Nature has a way of smacking you upside your college educated head. And that's a good thing.
Thanks Jim, you guys were a lifesaver. I was on the last trip the Lincoln made from Subic to Cebu and it was the first time I used a toilet in 2 weeks. The dugouts were the best place to do your business.
I went to Subic Bay in the spring of 1992, the year after all this happened. There was a ton of ash still sitting everywhere. I watched the USS Independence make the last visit of a US aircraft carrier. As Lance said, the US pulled out later that year because we couldn't come to an agreement for the lease, we offered over $200M but they wanted more.
Went back on a business trip to Bagio City, from Angeles City (Clark AB) in 2000. Driving through the sugar fields East of Pinatubo, on one of the main highways north, we still remember how much the ash looked like dirty snow banks on each side of the roads, in some places 10-12 feet high, similar to the Biblical parting of the Red Sea. Went back again in 2015 and it was pretty much all gone. Life goes on.
I was in bed with a friend when Mount Saint Helens blew. I was in Everett, WA, hundreds of miles away and it was so loud it shook the rickety old building I was living in and I thought some drunken cowboy had crashed into it. I threw a blanket around my friend and practically dragged her downstairs, certain that the house was about to collapse. after shivering in the backyard for a while we went back upstairs and back to sleep. volcanoes are nothing to be ignored.
It can be argued that the cooling of the atmosphere caused the conditions to form the 'storm of the century' in the form of the 1993 Blizzard that hit the East Coast USA.
Legend has it that the commander at Clarke noted the seismologists left their car running in the parking lot and didn't unsling their backpacks ... so he ordered the final evacuation while the scientists dashed for the door ...;
The US military is gone (though the presence is gradually increasing again due to tensions with China, etc) but now the Clark/ Angeles City and Olongapo/Subic areas are dominated by South Koreans and Chinese.
@@lancerevell5979 I never liked the top bunk...everybody stayed up late reading and writing with their bunk-lights on, and there was always a shortage of curtains. 😵💫😴😄
As I watch this the sky above me is brown with some ash falling from the Eaton fire in Pasadena. The Pacific Palisades fire smoke flowing right out to see. Still uncontrolled as I right this with hundred maybe thousands of multi million dollars home destroyed. No water now and homes left to burn with no one in site.
@@TheHistoryGuyChannel they did. I left my car. They shipped it back to California but it got as far as the port before the government trashed it and reimbursed me. It was deemed too damaged to be worth the trouble. I was surprised several months later, to get a package with everything that I had left in it.
Meanwhile, the US gov and Fed have been actively destroying the stability and credibility of the Dollar, particularly during the 2009 financial crisis and the lockdowns, putting the Dollar on the verge of being rejected by much of the world.
One of the USGS staff claims that as the data from the eruption neard he peak the USAF commander asked 'What doe this mean?" His supposed reply? "Put some jam in your pockets sir because we are toast!"
Rx every structure and the roads were very slow to travel on with all of the pitting. Our situation was getting better, theirs would remain bleak for months and months
Followed by the wettest winter on record in San Diego California. Might just as well give up Clark. There was no way to bulldoze the ash off the miles-long runways and taxiways. And where would the ash be put? Atop other ash? Rain would just put it back on the runways.
After that happened, two friends of mine, went to the Philippines and purchased everything in all of the military commissary and exchanges for both bases. They loaded it all up into. I don’t even know a couple hundred containers shipped it all back to New Jersey. They put it all in a warehouse hired people to clean everything up and then rented out a closed grocery store that still had a shelves and sold everything. They made a fortune.
I was about the same age, tho mostly I remember a few months later when Dad commented our more intensely colored sunsets were because of the volcano & that it was the same reason those victorian paintings had deep red sunsets, except a different volcano
I was Officer-in-Charge on USNS PASSUMPSIC and when we reported being ready to get underway first thing in the morning I was told in no uncertain terms that a Military Sealift Command ship was NOT going to be the first to be ready for sea, and I would just have to wait for a regular Navy ship to get ready... then we could be second.
I was an Electronics Technician 2nd Class on the USS Lake Champlain. I vividly remember the experience of ferrying a couple of boatloads of civilians from Subic to Cebu. I'd spent a lot of time in the Philippines during my naval career and was very sorry to see it go - both figuratively and literally. With the current threat to the Philippines from the excessively belligerent Chinese, I suspect they wish they'd not been so eager to kick us out. Clark was a total loss, but the Navy would have definitely kept Subic if given the opportunity. Power abhors a vacuum, which is exactly what was presented to China.
The timing of the eruption of Pinotubo, coinciding with the strife between the U.S. and the Phillipines government over the renewal of the base leases gives one some serious pause. It's almost as if the Almighty weighed in on the issue, and declared to the U.S., "time's up, time to GO!"
Just months before the eruption I recall a C-5A dropping black limousines for VP Dan Quayle’s delegation at Clark AB. Almost as quickly I remember the delegation (and the base negotiations) being cancelled and the limousines being picked up and taken away. It was then that official concerns about Mount Pinatubo became addressed by the base commander.
Watch 'In the path of a killer Volcano '. It's an excellent video about the eruption itself. During the main phase of the event, there was an eruptive column that appeared to be about 10 miles wide.
Wait ... all of us remember Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haʻapai ... that was just three years ago ... that was larger by the measure of "dense rock equivalent" ...
It's strange when watching the History Guy and I clearly recall a time when this story was current events.
Whew, I'm not the only one.
I saw the sign for the last movie at the Clark Airbase theater: "The Last Days of Pompeii." Sense of humor to the last.
Makes me feel old.
I was in highschool when this happened
I remember when this happened. Ended an era for us sailors
I was a Hospital Corpsman on the USS Proteus and took part in Operation Fiery Vigil. It was a shock to return to Subic which we had just visited in May and now it was total destruction. As a repair ship we immediately started fixing equipment and clearing roads. When the ash was falling it reminded me of Chicago during a major snow storm. It was everywhere, in our lungs, it plugged air filters on vehicles and without precautions it could be tracked everywhere. It was abrasive and caused many breathing problems. Clark was totally shut down and Subic along with the naval air station at Cubi point were in dire straits. We conducted medical and dental clinics for the Filipino population when ever possible and they were extremely grateful.
‘Insidious’ is the only proper word for volcanic ash I can think of. We visited Mount Unzen in Japan some time after the eruption. It was fairly quiet by then, but ash plumes started strengthening around the time of our visit. There was ash in the gutters of the town of Unzen-and we were awakened by the owner of the inn we stayed at pushing several inches. ash off his roof. Abrasive and potentially corrosive, it doesn’t do engines any favors, certainly.
I was there as a Marine for all the events discussed and the whole operation. Good coverage of the events. The problem was indeed ash combined with the rain. Locals unprepared. We were providing aid in town immediately and throughout the recovery.
Congratulations 🎉
Thank you for your service.
Thank You for your service. You are part of the Greatest Generation, and I wanted to thank you for your comment. It helped The History Guy's great true story come alive for me. God Bless You ❤️🇺🇲
We were there, NAS Cubi Point. VMA(AW)-332. We got our planes and bolted out in time, but we left 2 dudes who were in alcohol rehab. 😂
Many thanks TulaneAve. You folks served our country well. God Bless. 🎩-Tip
I was a junior officer onboard USS PELELIU during Fiery Vigil. When we arrived at Subic Bay we were using Night Vision goggles on the bridge to attempt to peer through the falling ash. As an LHA we off loaded Marines and engineering equipment and on loaded civilians and the entire maternity ward from the base hospital. I have lost count of how many births took place on our transit to Cebu. A number of buildings collapsed on base as the ash mixed with torrential rain resulted in raining cement. On top of the weight, the ash was very caustic knocking out electrical systems base wide.
I was 26 years old when Pinatubo erupted. That event, coinciding as it did with the arrival of a major typhoon, led to a literal forty days and forty nights of torrential rain across Luzon. It changed the weather all across the world -- I especially remember CNN footage of a bemused Bedouin leading his camel through the normally dry and barren Sahara, wondering at all the green stuff coming out of the ground!
Reynaldo Punongbayan was hailed as a hero for sticking to his guns and insisting that Pinatubo's environs be evacuated. He did indeed save untold thousands of lives -- the casualties noted by THG mostly came from a tribe who stubbornly refused to leave, holing up in a cave when the eruption began and subsequently being overwhelmed by the ash and lahar.
My wife was a kid in Porac, just south of Angeles City when the eruption happened. The stories she has told me of that time are worse than any horror movie I have ever seen. Her dad saved pictures taken then. My heart absolutely melts with sympathy when I see her with a blend of confusion and sheer terror from that time. She buries her head deep into my shoulder for reassuring comfort every night as a result of this experience.
I was in the Air Force in Korea at the time. We received units, people and equipment from Clark. Most of the equipment had to be discarded - it was ashed-out and useless. One of my coworkers was one of the 300 cadre left behind to get equipment out, household goods shipped, etc. they cleared a minimum operating strip at Clark so a senior DoD official could fly in and assess the situation. He didn’t make it off the airstair before he declared we were out of there. Didn’t matter how the Philippine senate voted, our decision was already made. Anyone on leave or TDY from Clark were told to go to the nearest Air Force base and sign in as permanent party. Guys on leave in North Dakota did not go to Minot, they bought commercial tickets to warm-weather bases and signed in there. Fun times.
I spent 40 days at home and called AFMPC. I told them to leave me there and ended up spending the next four years, stationed a half an hour from home.
It bothers me how so much takes place around the world, yet the U.S. legacy media focus battles only one or two political subjects. I confess appreciation for the Internet so I know what takes place around the globe. I thank you, Lance, for reminding us to remember there is more than our little part of the world -- yet it impacts us.
Absolutely. Couldn't agree more. U.S news outlets totally suck. It's all politics and celebrity crap.
@@laserbeam002exactly why i dont watch the tv
I remember this and the closing of Clark and Subic Bay. A bunch of us were sitting around the O Club talking about how they wanted us out, but the Philippines didn't think about how hard their economy would crash without the U.S. military there. They got their wish, their economy tanked, and the Chinese started looking at them. 20 years later they were begging us to come back.
I'm sure what you say is true. But the Philippine flag that flys over the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority today is the LARGEST flag I've ever seen on a flagpole. The only decent sidewalks I saw in the PI were the ones built by the Navy at Subic. That said, even 30+ years later a sophisticated man like THG can call the American payments to the PI government "aid" rather than "rent". If that signals the attitude US officials had in negotiations then it's no wonder they weren't successful. It may be a small thing but lease payments aren't ever thought of as "aid" in any sort of respectful business negotiations.
@@johndrennan5933 Their huge flag isn't doing much to protect them from Chinese fishing fleets in their territorial waters. That huge flag isn't doing anything to keep the Chinese Coast Guard from telling the Philippine navy to go pound sand when they sail around unstopped in their territorial waters. The Chinese aren't doing any negotiations, they are sailing in and taking what they want.
@WhiskyCardinalWes ya but that flag is big.they don't like Americans, but they sure do like our American money! nobody turns it down!
It's weird how us Americans feel so superior to other nations and look down those, like the Phillipines, who don't enjoy our permanent presence; yet, I rather doubt any of my fellow Americans--especially the Keyboard Patriots,--would look kindly on other nations having permanent bases in the US. Graciousness and humility are apparently not American traits, and judging by the comments some have posted, neither is respectfulness.
@@robinseibel7540And you even gave yourself a ",like". 😂🤡
Just for fun, here's some minor yet incredible facts you didn't include.
The eruption cloud was much taller than 12 miles on the day of the main eruption, June 15 1991. According to the USGS, the eruption column was "more than 40 km (28 miles) high."
Although that pulse of the eruption lasted just 3 hours, the volcano spent 18 of the 24 hours that day in eruption and the "climax" itself was 8 hours of essentially continuous eruption.
It also removed the top of the mountain, shortening it from 1,745m to 1,486m with the formation of a 2.5km wide caldera.
But the human impacts you focused on are much more important than this stuff. Great video! I'm old enough to remember this one, although I was just a kid at the time.
I had a relative in the navy tell me that the day before the blast, a scientist was running by the base commander and asked if he had jam in his back pocket. Asking why, he replied, if you don't leave soon, your a$$ is toast.
Sounds like scientist humor.
My Dad had been stationed at Clark Air Force Base in 1967-69. RIP Pop 1929-2011🇺🇲🫡🇺🇲.
Lots of our dads went thru there. 👍🇺🇲. (I forgot: some picked up wives along the way.)
I remember this. My wife and I were stationed in Yokosuka Japan. Circumstances led to me planning a trip to Subic Bay for the following month! Then I saw the news and scrapped those plans!
I was aboard the USS Nimitz when this happened. We had just left Subic enroute to the Persian Gulf in support of Desert Storm. The eruption of Pinatubo and the subsequent disruption in fleet logistics support meant that we didn't get supplies and mail for 6 weeks.
I'm currently living 20 minutes south of Clark (an hour east of Subic), in San Fernando, Pampanga Province, and the Pinatubo eruption is still fresh in resident's memories.
However, good cleanup was performed on Clark, and the grounds, buildings and facilities are good. The International Airport of Clark is becoming a popular point of departure and arrival for travelers!
I sure hope Pinatubo never decides to act up again, in my, or Wife's lifetime! We just moved into our new house!
Retired Military?
What do you know! I was on a ship headed to Damam (sp) to pick up some equipment and bring it back to the US.
We got diverted to Okinawa to pick up "road equipment" and take it to Subic Bay, to help clear the "ash" (that was about 3 ft deep!).
I had been told for many years that I should go sometime, I'd love it. Needless to say, I did not love it! Couldn't wait to leave! 😊
I was a crewman on one of the USN ships that raced to rescue and evacuate people when the volcano exploded. We made several trips from Subic to Cebu transporting people…even their pets.
My wife, two kids and my golden retriever may have been one of your passengers. My wife couldn’t say enough good about how the Navy treated our family. Thank you!
@
We even had a Great Dane on board on one of the passages. All the crew(when not on watch) slept topside on the weather decks so that the women and child had abed(rack) to sleep in during each three day portage. They all had hot meals in the mess decks…we had battle rations. The relief in their faces made it all worthwhile..they had been through doomsday in their eyes.
My mother, my brother, my 2 malamutes, and I may have been passengers. Just depends on your ship. We were on the USS Lake Champlain. The navy members were more than welcoming of us. I loved the rec room in the rough seas. It was like a roller coaster.
I have a very dear friend that I was in the US Navy Seabees with that participated in the disassembly of the bases after the eruption. The stories he told were quite scary.
I was at Clark when it happened. I remember it being black as night during the day and raining rocks. I remember and thank the Navy Exchange manager at Subic, who shared his house with me and the guys, the crew of the USS Midway who sailed us to Cebu, and the Air Force family who shared their house with us on Guam, even if it was only for a well needed shower and a nights sleep.
This video makes me wonder where my brain was back in my youth. I was in the Air Force at the time of these events. I remember the eruption of Mount Pinatubo. But, as to the surrounding issues you talked about, I remember nothing. Thanks for the excellent video.
I remember watching that eruption on television when my family was stationed at Carswell Air Force Base in Ft. Worth Texas. It worried a lot of the base community because a lot of people knew people stationed at Clark or Subic Bay, the military community felt like a small family when we realized how interconnected we were with events on the other side of the world. That feeling grew during Desert Shield & Desert Storm. As a military brat I’ll never forget the sense of military family we had. I tried numerous times & numerous ways to serve especially after 9-11 but kept getting medically denied, sometimes for the very medications military doctors had prescribed for me starting at Carswell AFB.
My dad was in the Army Air Forces and was stationed at Clark Field in 1939 to his capture in 1942. He said they would go hiking on Mt Pinatubo on the weekends before the war.
Operation Fiery Vigil really shows the importance of preparedness. Imagine having to organize an evacuation of that scale under such extreme conditions
The Navy has plans for every type of event. They were great when I was aboard the Lincoln. I was on their last or third trip from Subic to Cebu. I was assigned to sleep in pilots quarters. I got into my upper birth and the pilots were sleeping on the floor. I couldn't sleep with them on the floor, so I went to the ready room to sleep and gave a pilot back his rack. They were doing out laundry on the ship and the crew had not washed their clothes for 2 weeks.
I remember on local news someone's son was there and said it was the same smell as Mt St Helens May 18, 1980. I live in WA and collected a clear plastic tube of ash off my car hood, which is in my desk drawer less than a foot from my keyboard. Paid attention to news about it because I had been to the Navy Base many times during Vietnam and one trip to Clark. Now stuff I remember is "HISTORY!!!!!"
Thank you so much for this History. I was at Subic Bay and rotated home in February 1991. My time in the PI was some of my most memorable. I was 20 yo, and in the US Navy. I remember the communists being an issue and the PI military fighting them across the bay.
Theresa Ramirez.. I will never forget You. Now I know the.. Rest of the Story. I am told there is an American cemetery still at Clark AB...and American retired Military still take care of it. That info is over 10 years old now.
To all veterans and active duty, thanks for your service. I was stationed in Norfolk/Virginia Beach at Fleet Combat Training Center Atlantic Dam Neck Operations Specialist A School at the time. I visited Subic Bay in 1986 while deployed on USS Cape Cod AD 43. Still remember the name of the young lady I spent time with during the 4 day port visit, Belinda Rojo
I went to tech school with the 2 airmen that were murdered. They were on temporary duty from Kunsan AB Korea. I was stationed at Osan AB when they were murdered. I did temporary duty at Clark the previous December and stayed at the same hotel.
I was there when it happened. It was horrific. I had been downtown with a friend clubbing, we heard the shots but assumed it was fireworks. By the time we arrived at the hotel they were lying in the street and the killers had run off.
I was stationed there at the time. There were three airmen involved. They were negotiating ‘trike’ fares (kind of like a tuk tuk) when they were ambushed in the dark. Two airmen were shot outright. The third panicked and ran toward the shooters who were in the shadows. This may have saved his life as they got spooked and ran.
I was an aircrewman on the Marine Corps CH-53's, aboard the USS Midway. It was quite the operation. It was an absolute mess in Subic and Cubi Point. I can only imagine how bad it was at Clark.
I flew off the Midway in one to Cebu during all this. Bumpy but exhilarating.
@@Abbeville_Kid Yep, Cebu is where we flew everyone to from the Midway. Who knows, you may have been on one of my flights. 🙂
This isn't history, it was a part of my life. I was stationed on Guam and we received the majority of evacuees. The entire island was mobilized to support and help them on their journey back to the states.
Your life is still history.
@@jonniez62we were evacuated with our dog to Guam. My wife and I were asked by an Airman there if we would like to use his spare bedroom during our.stay . We were so grateful for the extreme kindness. Our dog was kenneled due to Guam's rabies quarantine and the Airman helped us visit the dog as he could see how anxious we were to find him.
@DarrylMiglio may have been one of my troops. I was working on Andy South in WRM Dorms after putting a full shift in PMEL.
I and some friends stayed one night with an Anderson family. It was really nice to get a shower after a few days.
On day one, a young sailor hobbled over to the mini mart on Andy South and asked for help to get up to the clinic on Anderson. I was more than happy to drive several people to the base for medical needs. He had jumped off something on the Lincoln and had been dealing with it for a couple of days. I suspect he broke it.
Thank You. I spent a lot of time at Subic and flew in and out of Clark. I remember there were slot machines in the terminal at Clark.....................Jay
I remember this.
Pinatubo would would come to be, in my mind, one the most extraordinary events in the last half century to impact US agriculture. This combined with burning Kuwait oil wells, instigated an atmospheric alteration of weather patterns affecting a large area of the crop producing areas for several years to follow. Even more so than Mt. St. Helen's May 1980 blast.
Just think, this was still less than 1/10th the size of the largest eruptions in recorded history. But those eruptions, such as the 1815 eruption of Mt Tambora (which this same channel has a good video on) hit in eras before modern communications, so someone in 1815 in Nebraska would likely have no idea that a volcano in southeast Asia blew up. They would then certainly have been be extremely confused and scared when 1816 was unusually cold with wild weather pattern and temperature swings and snow even in the middle of summer in places like New York, earning 1816 the title of "the year without a summer."
I am both extremely curious how an even larger event than Pinatubo would impact the modern world, but I know it would be really bad so I also hope to never experience it.
@@Lessinath
Agreed.
I am well aware of the Tambora event, but chose not to go there because of lack of personal experience. I’m sure my great great Grandpa could enlighten me. St. Helen's and Pinatubo did however impact and definitely change how I farm and grow crops. More recently, the Hunga Tonga event of 2022 has had some repercussions as well.
Lately, experts are taking note of slight increased activity of the Yellowstone caldera. That next event would be a dinosaur killer too.
@@LGR605 Yellowstone would be a big problem, but not a mass extinction level event for the whole world, just like its past eruptions haven't done that either. Regionally devastating and global impacts, but not enough to be a major extinction event.
But that's assuming it erupts, which as a geologist is not something I am convinced is coming any time soon. If it does erupt, that is also assuming it does so explosively. Most of Yellowstone's eruptions are actually big, sticky, rhyolite lava flows with minimal explosivity. The gas emissions from this lava are still an issue, but beyond the local area it would be an inconvenience, not a disaster.
One Financial quarter later, the Philippine government discovered that they had shot themselves in the foot by removing a major source of income with the spending of the personnel & dependents no longer based and quartered there
Which they were warned about ahead of time, but, politicians would never let things like the consequences of their own actions get in the way of the bad policies they want to push. After all, even in the Philippines the politicians are almost all very wealthy, and are thus largely insulated from those consequences. So why would they care?
@@Lessinath Many average Filipinos were still very angry over the US supporting the Ferdinand Marcos dictatorship for decades right up to a popular uprising finally overthrowing him
@@scottabc72 Justified anger, you won't hear me supporting the US on that BS. Or any of the other times all over the world they've done the same or even worse things. It still hurt them more than it helped them to kick the US out.
@@scottabc72 Yeah, they are still so angry that they elected Ferdinand Marcos' son as president.
Shot in the foot, you mean, with the defective ammunitions and weapons sent by the US as payment for the bases lease? And financial? Wasn't the US paying all in credits, like 2nd hand materiale, and not cold hard cash, like the US$?
That summer was cooler than average in Michigan. I was looking forward to a nice, warm summer after a winter of Lake Effect snow and sub zero temps, but was sorely disappointed.
It was a great episode! I worked for the US Navy just before this incident, I was not aware that it occurred
The Mt. Punatubo eruption coincided with my birthday. It was a dark and gloomy day as ash fall reached as far as Manila, about 200 kilometers from the Zambales mountain range side of the volcano.
I was there for this. I was stationed at Clark from 89 to 91. A wild time indeed.
3rd SPG, Jan 1990 to Nov 1991. Yup, wild time.
@viper2148 I was 3rd SPG also.
@@franzgeil422 C-flight “panthers” Security. You?
@viper2148 "A" Flight Security. Day shift. Barracks directly across from the Armory.
@@franzgeil422 I’m sure we’ve met. I worked for TSgt “Big Al” Ilaoa. Maybe you remember him.
My uncle was one of the last people out of Subic Bay. He was a CPO on the Nimitz. He pretty much turned out the lights before Pinatubo heaved it's contents on the navy base.
After Pinatubo erupted, the worldwide temperature dropped by 1°c. This doesn't sound like much, but that winter, in the Northern Hemisphere, here in canada, we experienced extended periods of -40°c, and where I was working on a drilling rig, at Bear Canyon Alberta, near the Alberta British Columbia border, we saw -64°c, and extended periods below -50°c. In the 25 years I worked as an oilwell driller, I have not seen colder temperatures. Mount Pinatubo was to blame for this. Volcanic activity could very well be the event that can test the resilience of civilization on this planet. Man, it was cold.
I was aboard USNS Passumpsic T-AO 107, a Military Sealift oiler, at Alava Pier at Subic. We'd arrived from the first Gulf War earlier in the week. We ended up hauling a large number of evacuees to Cebu the week following the eruption. The eruption made me think of a dress rehearsal for the Apocalypse. Oddly we returned immediately to Subic to clean tanks in prep for eventual layup. When we were about 50% done we went to Yokohama, to finish up at West Pier, next to the MSC Far East Office. My first trip with MSC after spending 11 years in the Navy. An auspicious start.
I was into hobby photography when the Mt. Pinatubo eruption occured. I still remember how the ash in the skies ruined sky photography for several years, worldwude, turning the nice clear blue into a washed out grey. I had to use a blue sky filter on outdoor photography. 😮
Hello History geek here love your videos keep it up man!
I had orders to Clark when the volcano blew up. I was on administrative hold for months before they determined what was to happen to me. In the end they just cancelled the orders and that was it. Charles
I appreciate you and thank you for making content.
Reminds me of that line from Operation Petticoat: Lieutenant Holden (played by Tony Curtis) is an operator; during an enemy raid he says "In confusion there is opportunity!" as he races out to pillage and pilfer supplies and stores!
I worked at NAVSTA Subic Bay from 1986 until Mt. Pinatubo blew up. We had to evacuate folks from Clark Air Base first and I caught the last boat out, the USS Abraham Lincoln. It was fairly livable until the typhoon hit which sucked all of the ash moving east and dumped it right where I lived.
Thank you for the lesson.
Philippines was considered good duty in '91. It was also considered "good duty" in '41. Till the unpleasantness shortly followed. Thanks for the history of Clark AFB. I lived thru Mt St Helens 2nd blow and the ash clogged everything, especially drains (since it was dry). When the first rains came, unexpected flooding from backed up lines was a YUGE problem, totally unforeseen. Nature has a way of smacking you upside your college educated head. And that's a good thing.
I saw a documentary made by the volcanologists that were there. They stayed until the last possible second, racing a pyroclastic flow to get out.
I was stationed on the Abraham Lincoln then and I still have a 35mm film case with some ash from Mt. Pinatubo
Thanks Jim, you guys were a lifesaver. I was on the last trip the Lincoln made from Subic to Cebu and it was the first time I used a toilet in 2 weeks. The dugouts were the best place to do your business.
I went to Subic Bay in the spring of 1992, the year after all this happened. There was a ton of ash still sitting everywhere. I watched the USS Independence make the last visit of a US aircraft carrier. As Lance said, the US pulled out later that year because we couldn't come to an agreement for the lease, we offered over $200M but they wanted more.
Went back on a business trip to Bagio City, from Angeles City (Clark AB) in 2000. Driving through the sugar fields East of Pinatubo, on one of the main highways north, we still remember how much the ash looked like dirty snow banks on each side of the roads, in some places 10-12 feet high, similar to the Biblical parting of the Red Sea. Went back again in 2015 and it was pretty much all gone. Life goes on.
It is good to have a history source we van trust
I was in the Navy during that time and did not know 90% of the information you just provided. Thank you.
I was in bed with a friend when Mount Saint Helens blew. I was in Everett, WA, hundreds of miles away and it was so loud it shook the rickety old building I was living in and I thought some drunken cowboy had crashed into it.
I threw a blanket around my friend and practically dragged her downstairs, certain that the house was about to collapse.
after shivering in the backyard for a while we went back upstairs and back to sleep.
volcanoes are nothing to be ignored.
And now we are trying to get those bases back...
It can be argued that the cooling of the atmosphere caused the conditions to form the 'storm of the century' in the form of the 1993 Blizzard that hit the East Coast USA.
Fascinating, thank you!
I remember that eruption. but do not remember the naval evacuation. Thank you for the history lesson from my youth.
I remember the Filipinos saying we can do without the Americans, boom went the volcano, Americans said "see ya". Careful what you wish for.
This was a very good one.
Thank you THG
That would be awesome to say you were born on an aircraft carrier!
Legend has it that the commander at Clarke noted the seismologists left their car running in the parking lot and didn't unsling their backpacks ... so he ordered the final evacuation while the scientists dashed for the door ...;
I heard something similar. This would have been after the initial evacuation of families and before the final “bug out” of military personnel.
The US military is gone (though the presence is gradually increasing again due to tensions with China, etc) but now the Clark/ Angeles City and Olongapo/Subic areas are dominated by South Koreans and Chinese.
Very interesting, History Guy, your entry becomes a gold mine of information from survivors,
Happy new year to you and your family and friends
That ship's berthing compartment brought back memories. Looks identical to the one I lived in for years.😀 *Those bottom racks should be "Triced-up".
On my ASW Frigate, early 1980s, I was lucky, had the top bunk of a stack of three. 😎👍
@@lancerevell5979 I never liked the top bunk...everybody stayed up late reading and writing with their bunk-lights on, and there was always a shortage of curtains. 😵💫😴😄
Connie, Indy , Ranger squid agreement
As I watch this the sky above me is brown with some ash falling from the Eaton fire in Pasadena. The Pacific Palisades fire smoke flowing right out to see. Still uncontrolled as I right this with hundred maybe thousands of multi million dollars home destroyed. No water now and homes left to burn with no one in site.
Friendly interspecies rivalry vanish when the time comes to work together.
Choosing to rescue your jet-ski might have been a silly choice.
I suspect they had to leave them behind in the end anyway.
@@TheHistoryGuyChannel they did. I left my car. They shipped it back to California but it got as far as the port before the government trashed it and reimbursed me. It was deemed too damaged to be worth the trouble.
I was surprised several months later, to get a package with everything that I had left in it.
Another excellent video!
😒😔 funny how everybody hates Americans but loves the dollar
Meanwhile, the US gov and Fed have been actively destroying the stability and credibility of the Dollar, particularly during the 2009 financial crisis and the lockdowns, putting the Dollar on the verge of being rejected by much of the world.
That is an amazing story!
I was there aboard Midway. Just saw a snap of our hangar bay when we began evacuating Clark personnel.
I remember this eruption but i did not know that it was 10x as strong as the mt. St Helene's eruption.
Love your jacket!
One of the USGS staff claims that as the data from the eruption neard he peak the USAF commander asked 'What doe this mean?" His supposed reply? "Put some jam in your pockets sir because we are toast!"
Rx every structure and the roads were very slow to travel on with all of the pitting. Our situation was getting better, theirs would remain bleak for months and months
Thank you History Guy
I love history and I remember the volcano blast but not to this extent...Bravo!!
Thank you for all I'm learning
10:45 "You want verification? There's your verification." A line in the movie "Tora! Tora! Tora!".
No Pirates?
I remember it like last week
We were all focused on the beginnings of the Gulf War at the time.
Followed by the wettest winter on record in San Diego California. Might just as well give up Clark. There was no way to bulldoze the ash off the miles-long runways and taxiways. And where would the ash be put? Atop other ash? Rain would just put it back on the runways.
After that happened, two friends of mine, went to the Philippines and purchased everything in all of the military commissary and exchanges for both bases. They loaded it all up into. I don’t even know a couple hundred containers shipped it all back to New Jersey. They put it all in a warehouse hired people to clean everything up and then rented out a closed grocery store that still had a shelves and sold everything. They made a fortune.
While this was recent history. A lot went on, that of which I had no knowledge.
I was a young kid when this happened. I remember it on the news in the 7th grade.
I was about the same age, tho mostly I remember a few months later when Dad commented our more intensely colored sunsets were because of the volcano & that it was the same reason those victorian paintings had deep red sunsets, except a different volcano
I was Officer-in-Charge on USNS PASSUMPSIC and when we reported being ready to get underway first thing in the morning I was told in no uncertain terms that a Military Sealift Command ship was NOT going to be the first to be ready for sea, and I would just have to wait for a regular Navy ship to get ready... then we could be second.
great video
I wonder what happened to all those Politicians complaining about the evacuation before the Volcano exploded! 😉
I was an Electronics Technician 2nd Class on the USS Lake Champlain. I vividly remember the experience of ferrying a couple of boatloads of civilians from Subic to Cebu. I'd spent a lot of time in the Philippines during my naval career and was very sorry to see it go - both figuratively and literally. With the current threat to the Philippines from the excessively belligerent Chinese, I suspect they wish they'd not been so eager to kick us out. Clark was a total loss, but the Navy would have definitely kept Subic if given the opportunity. Power abhors a vacuum, which is exactly what was presented to China.
Caught in the middle, it seemed like a well organized goat rope - after the fact.
The timing of the eruption of Pinotubo, coinciding with the strife between the U.S. and the Phillipines government over the renewal of the base leases gives one some serious pause. It's almost as if the Almighty weighed in on the issue, and declared to the U.S., "time's up, time to GO!"
Just months before the eruption I recall a C-5A dropping black limousines for VP Dan Quayle’s delegation at Clark AB. Almost as quickly I remember the delegation (and the base negotiations) being cancelled and the limousines being picked up and taken away. It was then that official concerns about Mount Pinatubo became addressed by the base commander.
Here's to successful evacuations.
Watch 'In the path of a killer Volcano '. It's an excellent video about the eruption itself. During the main phase of the event, there was an eruptive column that appeared to be about 10 miles wide.
Wait ... all of us remember Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haʻapai ... that was just three years ago ... that was larger by the measure of "dense rock equivalent" ...
Pinatubo's eruption in 1991 had, according to volcanologists, a higher Volcano Explosivity Index than Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haʻapai did in 2022.
Looks like my old ship down there, USS Peleliu (LHA-5).
I remember this event.
3rd SPG C-Flight “Panthers” Clark AB. Any other ‘Ash Warriors’ out there?