Mt. Pelee, Martinique

The volcano Mt. Pelee is located in Martinique (14.8 north, 61.1 west). It is 4583 feet tall and has a base of about 39 square miles. This volcano is made of mostly pyroclastic rock.  It has been active for 400,000 years and in 1851 had a mild eruption which didn’t do much damage. Mt. Pelee is famous for the May 8^th eruption in 1902 that killed approximately 25,025 people. On May 8^th loud explosions were heard and a big, black cloud came bursting out of Mt. Pelee. The ash and gas which came out of the mountain when it erupted swept over the town of St. Pierre at speeds estimated to be about 160 kilometers. This wave of heat, gas and ash blew down masonry walls at least 1 meter thick when it hit the town. Also the statue of Mary which weighed around 3 tons was moved 16 inches. During this eruption the pyroclastic flow swept over the town Morne Rouge killing 2000 people. The great eruption never stopped until well into the year 1903. In this eruption there was only two survivors. All the others either died from the ash and gases or were burned to death. One of these survivors was Auguste Ciparis who was in jail. He was buried alive in the poorly ventilated dungeon. The rescue team heard him yelling for help. His back was burned from the heat. The other survivor’s name was Leon Compere-Leandre. He was a shoemaker who was in his house during the eruption and lived while others in his house died from the heat. He made his way through the burning town safely. There were ships off of St. Pierre when the volcano was erupting. The crew of these ships all died. 

Information Sources:

www.geocities.com/RainForest/Canopy/5236/pelee.htm

www.Ideo.columbia.edu/~mwest/scrap/pelee/

By: Tyler B. and Ryan

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