Premier Meade Summarises Key Lessons Montserrat Learned from Lives Lost in the 1997 Eruption

Premier Reuben T. Meade told Parliament on Monday, July 28, that Montserrat’s government remains committed to applying the painful lessons of the 1997 volcanic disaster to current and future disaster preparedness plans.

He was responding to a question from Opposition Member Donaldson Romeo, who referenced the findings of a British coroner’s inquest into the deaths of 18 people on June 25, 1997. The inquest determined that their deaths were caused by a pyroclastic surge from the Soufrière Hills Volcano. It also concluded that a contributing factor was the continued operation of the airport in the days leading up to the tragedy, despite increased volcanic activity.

Mr Romeo asked the premier what key lessons government had learned from this failure to act.

Premier Meade said the core lessons include:

• The importance of public education and awareness about volcanic risks;
• Timely and effective communication between scientists, authorities and the public;
• Emergency preparedness and infrastructure, particularly the development of shelters in the northern safe zone;
• Proper access control and security in high-risk zones;
• And community involvement in disaster planning, to ensure culturally appropriate and practically useful evacuation and response strategies.

Romeo further pressed the premier on how these lessons were being shared beyond Montserrat.

“Lessons learned from the Montserrat volcanic situation have been and will continue to be shared through multiple strategies,” Meade said.

He cited the recent SHV30 conference hosted by the Montserrat Volcano Observatory as one key platform where regional and global stakeholders came together to share scientific findings and best practices.

Other mechanisms include:

• Publishing reports, policy briefs, academic papers and case studies;
• Collaborations with regional bodies such as CDEMA and the UWI Seismic Research Centre;
• Training exchanges and simulation exercises;
• And public awareness campaigns, including documentaries and educational materials.

Meade added, “I also have two 28-page documents produced by the MVO which I can share with the Honourable Member, if he’s committed to reading.”

The Premier reiterated that safeguarding life must always take precedence. “We must never again allow complacency or bureaucratic delay to cost Montserratians their lives,” he said.