ABSTRACT
The beginning and end of the twentieth century were marked by major volcanic eruptions that devastated several Caribbean islands. In 1902, both Mt Pelée (Martinique) and Soufrière (St Vincent) erupted within 18 hours of each other. A hundred years later, the eruptions of the Soufrière Hills volcano in Montserrat changed the lives of the island’s population for ever. During Mt Pelée’s eruption, a cloud of lethal superheated gas and ash (a pyroclastic flow) raced down the volcano’s flank at speeds over 100 mph (Bullard 1976). The prosperous town of St Pierre, then Martinique’s principal commercial centre, was annihilated in less than two minutes. Nearly 30,000 people were incinerated, asphyxiated or killed by the blast. Every building was destroyed and the heat was so intense it melted glass, fresh market produce was instantly carbonised and the wooden decks of ships in the harbour spontaneously burst into flames. Everyone in the town on that day was killed except for two lucky survivors, one of whom was Auguste Ciparis, who was incarcerated in jail at the time of the eruption, and the thick- walled, windowless cell saved his life although he was badly burned.
