DAVE AMOS SLOGS through the mud on the family farm with inner tubes Mount St. Helsn Sunday, it buried all 118 acres of his grazing land in what
strapped to his feet. "We've always get a lot of water here," said his father, like liquid concrete.
Jesse. When volcanic ash, logs and mud came down the Cowlitz River from
Searchers comb volcano area
From APand UPI
TOLEDO, Wash.-National Guard
helicopters hovered in the ashen hills
beneath Mount St. Helens yesterday,
futilely looking for 71 persons missing
since last weekend's catastrophic ex-
plosion./
"Nothing," said Sgt. Dave Brocious,
a National Guard spokesman. -
THE MOUNTAIN, meanwhile, quited
down after considerable rumbling
following the blast of hydrogen bomb
force Sunday that leveled 150 square
miles of trees and sent a cloud of
volcano ash over most of the United
States.
Preliminary estimates of damage
from the Mount St. Helens eruption
reached $1 billion: $400 million to
property, $200 million to forests, from
$150 million to $200 million to
agriculture and farm equipment, $50
million to roads and bridges, and at
least $15 million more needed to dredge
the Columbia River,w hich was made
impassable to large ships.
With 17 known dead, the search and
rescue teams had 15 acres pinpointed
that officials speculated could yield
more bodies, said U.S. Forest Service
spokesman Joe Nadolski.
FOR THREE DAYS, the dead were
left where they fell, while searchers,
concentrated on finding the living. Now
the dead are being pickup up. The 17
bodies were brought to a makeshift tent
morgue at the Toledo Airport, then tur-
ned over to coroners.
"We have some hope that people may
be alive out there, but that's slim," said
Gene Smith, coordinator of the search
for the Forest Service.
He said every report of tracks in the
ash "had led to nothing."
BUT SGT. CHUCK Foster, a National
Guard spokesman who lives at Silver
Lake down from the mountain, said
"If someone was on high ground and
got to the backside of the hills facing
away from the mountain, there is a
darn good chance they survived," he
said.
The latest survivors airlifted out
were a dog and three puppies that were
found Thursday next to the bodies of
two persons.
JACK HYDE, A U.S. Geological Sur-
vey researcher who has specialized in
studying Cascade volcanoes, said Sun-
day's eruption was one of the three
most violent in Mount St. Helens' 40,000-
year history.
4
Inflation rate eases
prime rate falls again
(ContinuedfromPage 1) "I think consumers have learned
rates substantially lower, the chairman their lesson," Miller said. "They have
of the House Banking Committee said learned their lesson that you don't have
yesterday. to'just keep borrowing for fear there's
Rep. Henry S. Reuss (D-Wis.), said no tomorrow, because there, is a
an unpublished survey by the Federal tomorrow ... I think the lesson itself is
Reserve for the first three months of that if we're more prudent, things get
1980 show that 66.96 per cent of business better."
loans made by "large New York He said the credit control program
banks" were below the prime rate. imposed by the Federal Reserve Board'
THAT COMPARED with 28.85 per and the. Carter administration on Mar-
cent below-prime rate loans in the last ch 14 has worked, and suggested it is no
quarter of 1979, he said. longer needed. The board dismantled a
Reuss charged that by posting prime major portion of the program Thur-
rates in the 20 per cent range but ac- sday.
tually charging large corporate
borrowers as little as 14 per cent, the The increase in the Labor Depar-
big banks unfairly discriminated tment's Consumer Price Index was the
against others- whose interest rates smlallest since January 1979 and
were computed from the posted prime. marked the first substantial drop in the
"The prime rate is supposed to nation's inflation rate since late 1978.
represent what banks charge their Department analysts said inflation
biggest customers," Reuss said. "Why might show further easing in May.
did the big New York banks, apparently Consumer prices had been jumping
acting in unison, kid the world by by 1.4 per cent a month since January
posting a phony prime rate? of this year - equal to a near-record 18
MEANWHILE, Treasury Secretary per cent annual inflation rate.
William Miller announced yesterday April's price rise, if it were to con-
that consumers have done their job in tinue at that pace for a full year, would
curbing buying and borrowing and can translate into an 11 and one-half per
resume spending as usual. cent annual inflation rate. That's still a
very high level by historic standards,
but a sharp improvement relative to the
REDUCEDC V E R inflation that has been battering con-
& PITCHERCHsumers since late last year.
SUNDAY NIGHT White House press secretary Jody
Powell called the report "extremely
good news" for consumers and
business.
Sunday is SPAGHETTI NIGHT
at Rick's
"All the pasta you can eat-only $2.50"
MONDAY- BURRITO FrIHT-$1.25)
5-Closing
Tonight's Entertainment- PRISMATICI