No one can predict the future. The people of Pompeii were certainly no exception. On the morning of August 24, 79 AD, Mt. Vesuvius overlooking Pompeii suddenly shuddered and spewed out fiery volcanic ash. The river of fire flowed from the volcano, destroying everything in its path while volcanic ash rained upon Pompeii and its unsuspecting people. The coastal city was soon buried beneath ash that measured more than ten feet deep. Even though hundreds fled to the nearby city of Herculaneum, a wave of unimaginably intense heat arrived to kill them. These heat waves also reached Pompeii, chocking to death anyone who had survived the initial eruption. Nothing was spared in the eruption that lasted more than 24 hours. The Romans could have been better prepared if they had understood the relationship between earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. For centuries, they learned to live with earthquakes, not knowing they signaled restlessness in the volcanoes. In 63 AD, a huge earthquake had damaged Pompeii, destroying buildings and reducing farmland. However, this did nothing to deter them and the city was quickly rebuilt. The residents repaired their city with paintings on their walls, decorative columns on their streets, and mosaic floors in their houses. No one suspected all the effort would end in vain.
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