Soufriere Hills Shows Its Fire: BIG PICS
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In 1997, Soufriere Hills erupted with a vengeance on the Caribbean island of Montserrat. Massive plumes of searing ash rumbled into the sky and down the volcano's flanks. Several small towns around the island were devastated, an airport destroyed, and 19 people were killed.
The combination of volcanic activity, hurricanes, and torrential rains turned part of the capital city of Plymouth into a latter-day Pompeii, buried under ash flows. The Hills have stayed angry ever since, with a series of smaller eruptions over the last decade.
In January, things picked up again, and scientists and photographers flocked to the island as glowing rockfalls and ash streamed down from the restless mountain. The images above and below were shot late last month by volcano photographer Richard Roscoe, as Soufriere built towards what turned out to be a dramatic crescendo.
On February 11, the summit lava dome partially collapsed, sending an epic ash plume 50,000 feet into the sky. Flows of searing ash and lava also rocketed down the volcanoes flanks and out to sea, as you can see below in a satellite image of the blast. Some folks living on the island took this video of the place looking pretty apocalyptic while a radio announcer talks uncertainly about the billowing darkness before them:
It was the largest eruption since 1996, but you can bet the mountain is far from done. Much of the lava dome that had been growing for years is still intact and if it collapses, the next eruption could be even bigger.
Image credits: Richard Roscoe, NASA
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