MONTSERRAT CASE HISTORY:
As an introduction to this subject, the volcanic disaster at Montserrat is described, 18 July 1995 to December 1997, adapted from Eruption of the Soufriere Hills Volcano, Montserrat, Geophysical Research Letters, vol.25, # 18 & 19, 1998.

The Soufriere Hills Volcano, Montserrat has been erupting for 4 years now. The hazard management problems have been severe, leading to massive evacuations, much hardship, and economic distress. Montserrat is a small island, and the hazards there are hard to avoid, have grown in severity with time, and have proven exceptionally diverse. They range from Cristobalite-bearing ash to roof-shattering, meter-scale ballistic clasts, from lava dome collapses that produce pyroclastic flows, to sector collapse avalanches capable of triggering directed blasts and generating tsunami. Vulcanic eruptions have exploded skyward, often with remarkable regularity, and pyroclastic flows generated by fountain collapse have poured down radial drainages. Through all this the volcano has been closely watched and monitored, with the phantom of St.Pierre on Martinique, the Pompeii of modern times, imbedded uncomfortably in the collective memory of decision makers and scientists providing guidance to authorities and citizens of the island. It has become one of the most closely monitored volcanoes in the world.
A Montserrat Volcano Observatory (MVO) has been established with staff drawn from SRU, Trinidad (sru@wow.net) and British Geological Survey, UK Universities, USGS, CNRS, and many others.
(Geophysical research Letters, vol.25, 1998).
Montserrat has an area of 80 sq. km. The eruption has threatened over half the island, including the capital, Plymouth and most of the population. More than 8,000 people had to leave their homes and businesses. The island has been depopulated from 12,000 to about 3,500. Plymouth, the capital, has been largely destroyed. The economy of the island has been devastated .
Tragically, 19 people were killed in the eruption of 25 June 1997.
Despite these terrible events the Montserratian Society has clung on and shows every prospect of surviving. Lava dome growth ceased in March 1998 and there is a cautious hope that the volcano may have entered a period of repose.