Pyroclastic flows

A Pyroclastic flow is a devestating effect of a volcanic eruption and its quite common too. It is a fast flowing, hot moving current packed with gas and rocks. The flows can get as hot as 1000degreeC. The flows travel down the hill of the erupted volcano almost hugging the ground or spread laterally due to gravity. The speed of the flow depends on a few things they are the density of the current, the rate at which the debris are spat out of the volcano and the slope at which it travels down. The flows that contain more gas than rocks are known as " fully diluted pyroclastic density currents". A pyropclastic flow happened at Mount Pelee and in the city of St-Pierre and killed nearly 30,000 people.