Montagne Pelée volcano

The Montagne Pelée is a typical island-arc calc-alkaline volcano (1397 m high), located in the northern part of Martinique Island. It is one of the most active and dangerous volcanoes in the Lesser Antilles arc. Three main stages are now considered in literature separated by two major flank-collapse events (Le Friant et al., 2003; Germa et al., 2015; Boudon and Balcone-Boissard, 2021 and references therein). The first stage of edification (550,000-127,000 years), also called the primitive Montagne Pelée, corresponds to lava flows and lava domes building the Mount Conil and followed by a consequent flank-collapse event. The second stage activity (127,000-36,000 years) is marked by dominant lava dome-forming eruptions and associated concentrated pyroclastic density currents (nuées ardentes). A second flank-collapse initiated the third stage (36,000 years-Today). The volcano activity is largely characterised by alternating Plinian and dome-forming eruptions, primarily involving andesitic magmas. Pyroclastic deposits are dominant compared to massive lavas. The total cumulative erupted volume for Montagne Pelée is estimated at ca. 72 km3 (Germa et al., 2015). The most devastating eruption occurred in 1902 and caused the destruction of the towns of Saint-Pierre and Morne Rouge and the death of 30,000 people (Lacroix, 1904).