Plymouth, Montserrat
| Plymouth | |
|---|---|
| Abandoned town | |
Plymouth in 2006, following the 1997 eruptions which buried most of the town in ash
|
|
 Location of Plymouth within Montserrat |
|
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Overseas territory |
 Montserrat
|
| Population (2016) | |
| • Total | 0 |
| 4000 inhabitants before evacuation as a result of volcanic eruption | |
| Time zone | Atlantic (UTC-4) |
Coordinates: 16°42′23″N 62°12′57″W / 16.706417°N 62.215839°W
Plymouth was the capital of the island of Montserrat, an overseas territory of the United Kingdom located in the Leeward Island chain of the Lesser Antilles, West Indies. Constructed on historical lava deposits near the (then inactive) Soufriere Hills volcano, the town was evacuated when the volcano resumed erupting in 1995, and was abandoned permanently in 1997 after it was burnt and mostly buried by a series of pyroclastic flows and lahars. For centuries it had been the only port of entry to the island.
Plymouth is still de jure the capital of Montserrat, giving it the unusual distinction of being the only ghost town which is the capital of a political territory.
Beginning in July 1995, a series of huge eruptions at the Soufrière Hills volcano sent pyroclastic flows and ash falls across a wide area of southern Montserrat including the capital, Plymouth. It was immediately clear that the town was in grave danger; on 21 August 1995, tephra fell on Plymouth, and in December residents were evacuated as a precaution. Residents were allowed back a few months later but on 25 June 1997, a massive eruption produced pyroclastic surges that killed 19 people and reached nearly to the island's airport on the eastern side of the island. Plymouth was again evacuated.
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Wikipedia