The sky is collapsing and the earth is splitting apart.

Dr. Harry Dalton (played by Pierce Brosnan) is a volcanologist at the U.S. Geological Survey, and he has been sent to a small town on Mount Dante for an inspection, as Mount Dante is a dormant volcano near Washington. Upon arriving in town, Harry finds that Mayor Rachel (played by Linda Hamilton) is hosting a celebration because the town has just won second place in the national Best Places to Live awards. Rachel, along with her two children, shows Harry around, and when they pass by a hot spring lake, Harry notices that the water's acidity is too high and discovers two boiled corpses. Realizing that something is wrong, Harry suspects that the volcano is likely to erupt and advises Rachel to issue a warning. However, Paul's superior, who is accompanying Harry, believes he is overreacting and plans to return home after a week of exploration. The town council also refuses to issue a warning for various self-serving reasons. However, one night, the town's water is suddenly contaminated with sulfur, which is a sign of an impending volcanic eruption. Rachel immediately activates a town-wide evacuation plan, but her mother refuses to evacuate from halfway up the mountain. At this moment, the volcano has...