In the spring of 1902, Mont Pelée on Marti- nique stirred to life and the citizens of Saint- Pierre began to worry about their restless neighbor only 10 km away. However, municipal leaders refused to act; the island was in the midst of general elections with socialists poised to take control from right- wing politicians. Because Saint-Pierre was the main center of conservative voters, the governoranxious to keep his cronies in powerput off evacuation until after polling on May 11. On May 2, Mont Pelée erupted, sending an incandescent pyroclastic flow directly towards Saint-Pierre. Within minutes the entire city and all but three or four of its 30 000 citizens had perished.
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