Which volcano on Montserrat destroyed the island's capital, Plymouth, in the 1990s?

The volcano on Montserrat that destroyed the island’s capital, Plymouth, in the 1990s was Soufrière Hills.

After centuries of dormancy, Soufrière Hills became active in July 1995. Early activity included phreatic, or steam-driven, explosions, followed by the growth of an andesitic lava dome. Authorities repeatedly evacuated southern Montserrat as ashfall, lahars, and pyroclastic flows increased.

Plymouth was permanently evacuated in April 1996. Major pyroclastic flows and dome collapses in 1997 buried much of the city, and Plymouth was abandoned as a ghost town. The eruption also destroyed the island’s airport and rendered much of southern Montserrat an exclusion zone. Nineteen people died in a major pyroclastic flow on 25 June 1997.

A common mix-up is “La Soufrière,” a name used for other Caribbean volcanoes, including Saint Vincent’s volcano. Soufrière Hills is the specific volcano on Montserrat; “Morne Watt” is another Montserrat volcanic feature, while Mount Liamuiga is on Saint Kitts.