Seismic activity had occurred in 1897–1898, 1933–1937, and again in 1966–1967, but the eruption that began on 18 July 1995 was the first since the turn of the 20th century. The first
phreatic explosion in this new period of activity occurred on 21 August 1995, and such activity lasted for 18 weeks until it caused an
andesitic lava dome formation. This was initially confined by a sector-collapse scar, first identified in the 1930's and called
English's Crater. This period of activity lasted for another 60 weeks, after which there were major dome collapses and two periods of explosive volcanic eruptions and fountain-collapse pyroclastic flows. The explosion blanketed Plymouth, away, in a thick layer of ash and darkened the sky almost completely. Pyroclastic flows were first observed on 27 March 1996. Although these pyroclastic flows and mudflows were initially confined to unpopulated areas, a major pyroclastic flow on 17 September 1996 caused severe damage to the village of Long Ground, near the volcano. By August 1997, much of the southern part of the island, including most of Plymouth, had been buried by pyroclastic flows. During this period, the southern portion of the island, including the capital Plymouth, was evacuated three times. The first evacuation lasted from 21 August 1995 – 3 September 1995, after the first phreatic eruption. The second evacuation began on 1 December 1995, due to growth of the lava dome. Residents were allowed back to most areas, including Plymouth, on 1 January 1996, but residents of some areas on the eastern flank of the volcano were not allowed back until 15 January 1996. On 3 April 1996, after
pyroclastic flows and mudflows began occurring regularly, southern Montserrat, including the capital, Plymouth, was permanently evacuated. Earthquakes continued to occur in three
epicentre zones: beneath the Soufrière Hills volcano, in the ridge running to the northeast, and beneath St George's Hill, about to the northwest. A large eruption on 25 June 1997 resulted in the deaths of nineteen people. The
island's airport was directly in the path of the main pyroclastic flow and was completely destroyed. Montserrat's tourist industry also collapsed, although it began partially to recover within fifteen years. The governments of the
United Kingdom and Montserrat led the aid effort, including a £41 million package provided to the Montserrat population; however, riots followed as the people protested that the British Government was not doing enough for aid relief. The riots followed a £10 million aid offer by
International Development Secretary Clare Short, prompting the resignation of
Bertrand Osborne, then
Chief Minister of Montserrat, after allegations that he was too pro-British and had not demanded a better offer. The British
destroyer took a major role in evacuating Montserrat's population to other islands, including
Antigua and Barbuda who warned they would not be able to cope with many more refugees.
Abandoned settlements The following is a list of Montserrat settlements abandoned by the eruption of the Soufrière Hills volcano: •
Amersham • Bethel† • Bramble† • Cork Hill • Dyers† •
Elberton • Fairfield† • Farm† • Farrell's† • Farrell's Yard† • Gages • Galway's Estate† • Harris† • Hermitage† • Kinsale • Lee's • Molyneux • Long Ground† • Morris's† • North Olveston (since re-settled) • Old Towne (since re-settled) •
Plymouth – the capital of Montserrat, initially evacuated in August 1995; abandoned and destroyed in 1997† • Robuscus Mt† • Saint George's Hill • Saint Patrick's† •
Salem (since re-settled) • Soufrière† • Streatham† •
Weekes • Woodlands (since re-settled) †Settlement was destroyed In addition, the
W. H. Bramble Airport was destroyed. ==Activity since 1999==