The 1902 Mt. Pelée Eruption (Episode 47)

In the spring of 1902, Mt Pelée, a volcano on the Caribbean island of Martinique, began behaving a little strangely. First, there was the overwhelming stink of sulphur. Then, steam eruptions became visible, and ash began to fall. Next were snake attacks, mudslides, flash floods, tsunamis, and smallpox. At the foot of the volcano, in the town of St Pierre, people were torn between evacuation ... and voting in the upcoming election, in which Progressive and Radical candidates were facing off for a seat in French Parliament. On this episode, we're getting into why politics and volcanoes should never mix. 

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Sources for this episode include:

“The Day the World Ended” by Gordon Thomas and Max Morgan-Witts, 1969

"The Eruption of Mt. Pelee", San Diego State University geology department, 2001

"Benchmarks: May 8, 1902: The deadly eruption of Mount Pelée" by J. Rosen for Earth Magazine, 2015

"The Unlucky Consul: Thomas Prentis and the 1902 Martinique Disaster" by W. Bent for American Foreign Service Association Journal, 2020