First Eruption on Montserrat 1995

Eighty percent of the public facilities were built in the shadow of the Soufriere Hills, the tallest of all on the island of Montserrat. Plymouth is the capital in which most of the people work and live. Farms are found on the fertile slopes here.

The dense vegetation on the fertile soil in this tropical paradise cover up some hidden dangers.As a matter of fact, Montserrat lies on the most active parts of the Caribbean Sea plates. As the North Atlantic Ocean plates moved west, it sank and melted into lava. After thousands of years, the lava moved up to form the Leeward Islands of which Montserrat was one.

On July 18, 1995, the sounds of jet engines were heard. Eruption of Soufriere Hills began. Volcano Specialists came flying in to set up observation points and a centre to monitor the eruptions. They considered the sounds were made by steam expulsion The length and intensity of the eruptions were recorded 24 hours a day and closely observed by the scientists.

Another “steam expulsion” burst out volcano ashes, mud and steam to a height of 2 kilometres. The whole of Montserrat was shaken up. The south-western part of the island was covered by a thick blanket of volcano ashes. Half an hour later, the ash was dispersed. Once more, sunlight came through the dust and the entire area was covered with ash. The local people called that day as “Grey Monday”. With the assistance of British army, 6000 citizens were evacuated to the temporary homes north of the island.