Eruption of deadly volcano that wiped out 30,000 people ‘cannot be excluded’ after recent activity: scientists

A Caribbean volcano responsible for one of the deadliest eruptions in history has shown a spike in seismic activity, sparking concerns that it could potentially blow again.

Situated on the Caribbean Island of Martinique, Mount Pelée erupted on May 7, 1902, sending a flow of hot gas, ash, and rocks through the nearby hub of Saint-Pierre, killing nearly 30,000 people in a single afternoon. This made it the third deadliest volcanic eruption of the 20th century.

The eruption of Mount Pelée, which killed 30,000 people on May 8, 1902, in St. Pierre, Martinique. Getty Images

Were Mount Pelée to erupt today, the resultant pyroclastic flows could reportedly put the 400,000 people who live on Martinique at risk while ashfalls could disrupt electricity and ground flights, per a 2021 study.

While the volcano has been dormant since 1932, it showed signs of unrest with experts detecting 124 earthquakes between July 24 and July 31 — nearly three times the number picked up the week prior, per the Martinique Volcanological and Seismological Observatory.

They reportedly recorded 331 volcanic earthquakes during the entire month, breaking down to roughly 85 per week.

The trend harks back to 2019, when the Caribbean volcano’s number of earthquakes jumped dramatically above the baseline of 19 per month and exceeded it for several months.

A ruined cathedral is seen in St. Pierre after the Mount Pelée eruption. Bettmann Archive

Volcanic earthquakes occur due to rock masses fracturing beneath a volcano due to stressors such as rising magma or hydrothermal fluids, according to the Pacific Northwest Seismic Institute.

Although the earthquakes — none of which had a magnitude higher than 1 and weren’t felt by the population — don’t necessarily signal an imminent eruption.

Meanwhile, since May, scientists have recorded several inches of ground movement per month at Mount Pelée’s summit, per the Martinique observatory.

Experts have attributed these subterranean shifts to a deformation located approximately 0.6 miles below the summit that is causing it to inflate from within. Thankfully, the number has slowed slightly over the past four weeks, hopefully signaling that the pressure is easing.

While these seismic overtures aren’t symptoms of a pending volcanic event, experts warn that we can’t breathe easy just yet.

“The probability of eruptive activity in the short term remains low,” the Martinique Observatory declared. “However, considering the observations accumulated over the past months and years, an evolution of the situation in the medium term (weeks to months) cannot be excluded.

They’ve currently toggled the alert level to “YELLOW,” signaling the need for vigilance.