May 1, 1580 Eruption of Sao Jorge

Name: May 1, 1580 Eruption of Sao Jorge
Start: 1580-05-01
Location: Sao Jorge, Portugal

May 1, 1580 · VEI 3 · 10 deaths

Sao Jorge in Portugal erupted on May 1, 1580 with a Volcanic Explosivity Index of 3. The eruption killed 10 people.

Where it erupted

Sao Jorge, Portugal, with its other significant eruptions.

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The eruption

Date: May 1, 1580
Volcano: Sao Jorge, fissure vent
Country: Portugal
Volcanic Explosivity Index: 3, moderate to large (eruption column 3 to 15 km)
Killed by: Pyroclastic flows, surges and direct blasts
Location: 38.650° N, 28.080° W

The toll

Deaths: 10

Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.

What the record says

NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.

10 perished in eruption.

Other significant eruptions of Sao Jorge

Every eruption in 1580 The 1500s Sao Jorge Earthquakes near Sao Jorge This day in weather history

Sources

Volcanoes and significant eruptions from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. Volcano numbers are the Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Program’s. NCEI event 4345.