English subtitles for clip: File:Vesuvius in Eruption, newsreel (1944).ogv

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(ominous, dramatic music begins)

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Up from the crater of 4,000-foot-high Mount Vesuvius, rise towering clouds of

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smoke and volcanic ash, as the great Neapolitan volcano bursts into eruption,

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the worst in 38 years.

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Beneath the billowing smoke, pushed forth from Vesuvius' summit by the

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incredible heat within the crater, streams of molten rock at 2,500°F

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surge down the mountain's sides. For many years, the ancient volcano has been

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relatively peaceful. In recent weeks hardly a breath of smoke had risen

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from its crater. But now, as if in violent compensation for its days

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of good behavior, Vesuvius once again strikes terror

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into the surrounding Italian countryside.

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(music becomes more pounding and threatening)

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A giant wall of lava, in some places 30 feet high, surges irresistibly forward

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through field and farm—sometimes faster, sometimes slower.

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The searing, destructive mass moves at a speed of 12 feet a minute overall.

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The steaming, molten tide draws near the the villages

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of San Sebastiano and Massa di Somma.

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(sound of approaching lava)

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Fifth Army soldiers and villagers in the area see the spectacular

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wave of destruction draw nearer and nearer.

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(sound of approaching lava)

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Orchards singed bare by the approaching lava wall are engulfed in its course.

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The flow has now reached San Sebastiano!

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(sound of burning houses; music gets more dramatic)

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(sound of burning wood)

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(sounds of walls collapsing)

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(quiet, somber music)

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Italian civilians, already hit hard by years of Fascist misrule and war,

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gather in religious processions to pray for salvation from this natural

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catastrophe. For centuries, the moods of towering Vesuvius have periodically

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terrified inhabitants of the Naples area. In 79 AD, it buried proud Pompeii.

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Seven major eruptions have been recorded since.

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In 1631, it killed 18,000 in Naples, destroying homes and lives.

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Now Vesuvius strikes again!

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(sound of wall collapsing)

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(music becomes more frantic again)

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Directly in the path of the approaching lava, villagers prepare to escape.

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Aided by the Allied Military Government, they salvage their household possessions.

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(sound of wall collapsing)

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(sounds of several walls collapsing)

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Spewed forth in huge clouds, volcanic ash and cinders blanket the countryside

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for miles around. At the port of Salerno 17 miles away, where the Allies

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first landed in their campaign against the Germans in Italy,

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streets and buildings are covered with the black ash.

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Umbrellas protect pedestrians, while thick piles of the volcanic deposit

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are cleaned up by Allied troops.

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(sounds of bulldozers)

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(music builds to finale)

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Vesuvius—unpredictable and unconquerable—has had its way!

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(closing trumpet fanfare)