| Montserrat
Volcano | Soufriere Hills
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The
Soufriere Hills volcano
on the tiny island of
Montserrat lay dormant
for hundreds of
thousands of years. In
1992 small earthquakes
and some seismic
activity began. On the
18th July 1995 the
mountain awoke and
started spewing steam
and ash into the air. In
August 1995 the first
major eruption took
place which covered the
nearby town of
Plymouth
(the capital of
Montserrat) in a thick
layer volcanic ash.
Plymouth and the whole
of the southern part of
the island was
evacuated. |
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Erupting
Volcano |
Soufriere
Volcano |
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In 1997
there was a huge
volcanic eruption which
killed 19 people, buried
most of Plymouth and
destroyed the
W H
Bramble airport in a
pyroclastic flow.
Casualties would have
certainly been much
higher; however, more
than half of the
population had already
abandoned the island to
live elsewhere.
Reconstruction is
taking place in the
north of the island;
well away from the reach
of the Volcano. |
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Since 1997 there has
been an exclusion zone
covering Plymouth and
the whole of the south
eastern part of
Montserrat. The
Montserrat Volcano
now
forms a valuable part of
the island's tourist
industry with volcano
viewing tours from safe
vantage points.
The volcano is monitored
by the Montserrat
Volcano Observatory
(MVO) in Flemmings;
including gas emissions
and measuring seismic
activity. The
photo
(below) was taken from the
observatory (left image).
External links:
Montserrat Volcano Observatory:
http://www.mvo.ms |
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All text and images
are Copyright
Paradise Islands
org 2009. Caribbean travel, vacation & cruise guide |
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Buried Plymouth |
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Bramble Airport |
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Reconstruction |
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Things To Do |
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