The authorities of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines began to evacuate local residents of several areas of the island nation. The reason for this was the awakened Soufriere volcano. This was announced on Thursday, April 8, by Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves.
An order was issued for the evacuation of all residents living in the “red zones” in the northeast and northwest of the island. There has been no strong volcanic activity on the island since 1979. The largest volcanic eruption occurred in 1902 and killed more than 1,000 people.
To the south of the volcano there is a chain of gradually descending cones of extinct volcanoes. Its slopes (steep western and more gentle eastern) are covered with dense humid tropical forests, and numerous mountain streams form a complex system of rivers and lakes (in the southern part of the crater there is a volcanic lake 183 m wide). Many river streams have been interrupted by volcanic activity, so on the slopes there are often “dry rivers”, whose channels were blocked by lava flows. Soufriere is one of the most studied volcanoes in the world – seismic stations and geophysical laboratories continuously monitor its activities, and researchers regularly conduct experiments to observe the development of the earth’s crust.