 The helicopter's pilot, Otis Kaylor (Ron O'Neal), makes a successful emergency landing, only to be accused of nearly killing a group of loggers.Shortly afterward, United States Geological Survey volcanologist David Jackson (David Huffman) arrives to investigate the activity.Upon arriving in the small town of Cougar, Washington, he quickly befriends Linda Steele (Cassie Yates), a single mother who works as a waitress at a restaurant named Whittaker's Inn.