"In the last 500 years, nearly 300 million people have perished in earthquakes. Time and again, volcanic eruptions have destroyed cities, regions, and even entire countries. From the legendary fury of Mt. Vesuvius to the devastating convulsions of Kobe, Japan, 'Savage Earth' tells the stories of these great natural disasters, the scientists who struggle to understand and predict them, and the people whose lives are forever changed by their merciless force"--Containers.

Originally broadcast on July 19 and July 20, 1998 on PBS.