So you thought the eruption of Mount Vesuvius was pretty bad?

Pollution, of many types, is known to affect human health. Erupting volcanoes are also known to affect human health (case in point: Pompeii). When the two are combined, the damage can be even more widespread.   Volcanic eruptions have caused massive disruption to life in many ways, for example the 2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajokull in Iceland, which caused the biggest air traffic disruption in peacetime (until upstaged by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic).   In 2014–2015, pollution from the Holuhraun basalt lava eruption was closely followed by an increase in respiratory disease in the surrounding areas. The eruption was the largest seen for over 230 years, resulting in 11 million tons of sulfur dioxide being released across Iceland and the Atlantic Ocean. This...