St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Flag
Location
13.25°N, 61.2°W
Area
389.00 sq km
Capital
Kingstown
Timezone
Eastern Caribbean (UTC-4)
Population
101,145 (2021 est.)
Full Country Name
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Geography
St. Vincent is located within the southern part of the Lesser Antilles island arc about 161 km west of Barbados, 109 km north of Grenada and 306 km north of Trinidad. It is the largest of the 32 islands and cays that make up the multi-island country of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. It is roughly oval in shape and is approximately 29 km long and 17.5 km wide at its broadest point. A very prominent central mountain range from La Soufrière (1,178 m), in the north, to Mount St. Andrew (736 m) in the south runs the length of the island. This range of volcanic mountains divides the island almost equally between a gently sloping eastern or windward side and a deeply dissected and rugged western or leeward side. The island enjoys a tropical climate with the hottest and most humid months between June and September when daytime temperatures reach an average high of 30°C.
Country Facts
Approximately 101,145 people live on the islands with St. Vincent having the largest population.Referred to as Vincentian or Vincy (colloquially). English is the official language. Currency used: Eastern Caribbean Dollar (XCD).
Disaster Management
In the event of an earthquake, volcanic eruption or tsunami the National Emergency Management Organisation is the official authority in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
National Emergency Management Organisation
Ministry of National Security
Old Montrose
Kingstown
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Tel: +1 784-456-2975
Email: nemosvg@gmail.com or nemosvg@gov.vc
Website: www.nemo.gov.vc
Seismicity Overview
St. Vincent lies in an area of the Caribbean which has a relatively low seismic hazard. Volcanic earthquakes have been associated with most of the explosive eruptions of La Soufrière in the historic past. Earthquake activity prior to a violent eruption in St. Vincent has varied from a few days to months and even years (Anderson and Flett, 1903, Shepherd, et. al., 1979). However, there have been numerous occasions in which earthquakes have occurred with no ensuing eruptions so the earthquakes may not necessarily be a consistent indicator of impending volcanic activity.
Volcanism Overview
St. Vincent is made up of a series of volcanoes that form a central range of mountains from La Soufrière volcano in the north to Mount St. Andrew in the South. This central backbone consists of several old volcanoes which are no longer active, e.g. Grand Bonhomme, Richmond Peak & Mount Brisbane.
In the past, volcanic activity in St. Vincent has alternated between violently explosive eruptions and quiet emissions of lava. This activity has produced mountains made up of several layers of lava and rock fragments called stratovolcanoes. Later activity has formed prominent peaks or lava domes in the interior of the island.
La Soufrière Volcano
Rising 1,178m (3,864ft) above sea level and occupying the northern third of the island, La Soufrière volcano is the only ‘live’ or potentially active volcano in St. Vincent. Several eruptions in the past have caused considerable damage and numerous casualties. Three major eruptions occurred in 1812, 1902 and 1979.
Date Type of Eruption
1718 Explosive
1780 Dome building
1812 Explosive; >56 fatalities
1880 Dome building
1902-03 Explosive; >1,565 fatalities
1971-72 Dome building
1979 Explosive, no fatalities; >14,000 evacuated
2020-2021 Explosive, no fatalities; ~18,000 evacuated (Explore our 2020/2021 Eruption page)
Future Eruptions
In the future, activity at La Soufrière is expected to be quite similar to that experienced in the past century. It is possible that explosive eruptions of similar or larger size than the 1979 eruption will occur. The UWI-SRC scientists provide advice as well as produce maps and other public information material so as to enable the public and authorities to better prepare for volcanic eruptions. Know where you live in relation to La Soufrière and know what to do if an eruption occurs.
St. Vincent is entirely volcanic and Rowley (1978a) observed that there is “roughly an even distribution of lava flows and pyroclastics”. However, recent mapping suggest that there is much variation in this distribution, so that at some centres (e.g. South-East Volcanics) lavas are dominant while at others (e.g. Grand Bonhomme Volcanic Centre), volcaniclastics predominate. Rowley (1978b) estimated that 55% of the island was mantled by well-bedded, pyroclastic fall deposits (the Yellow Tephra Formation), produced by eruptions of the Soufrière volcano during the late Pleistocene.
The rock types exposed on the island fall into four compositional groups: basalts; basaltic-andesites; andesites, and xenoliths of coarse-grained plutonic and metamorphic character. Basalt is generally the most abundant rock type in the most southern parts of the island while basaltic-andesites dominate further north. Basaltic magmas are most common during the early stages in the evolution of individual volcanic centres and andesites are most common as dykes and as the last stage dome or central plugs, which occupy the vent at some centres.
Structurally the island is aligned along a north-south axis. Slope gradients along the west of the central axis of the island are significantly greater than gradients on the east. No field evidence has been found of faulting but almost all the major river courses on the island appear to be structurally controlled. An emergent coastline found along the east coast has been suggested by Rowley (1978a) to be due to Plio-Pleistocene uplift. Erosion has severely dissected the southern volcanic centres and original structures cannot be readily identified. Arcuate scarp features located at Grand Bonhomme, Morne Garu and the Soufrière volcano have been attributed to relict caldera or collapse structures (Rowley, 1978a; Sigurdsson and Carey, 1990; Geotermica Italiana, 1992). A number of cold mineral springs are located in the southern parts of the island but fumarolic activity is confined to the Soufrière volcano.
St. Vincent has been divided into four major geologic regions: the South-East Volcanics, and the Grand Bonhomme, Morne Garu and Soufrière Volcanic Centres (Robertson 2003); based an examination of of the topography field geology, geochemistry and previous work undertaken on the island. The geology of the Pre-Soufriere Volcanic centtres are described below. Information on the Soufriere Volcanic Centre can be found here.
The age, lack of seismicity and lack of geothermal activity suggest that both the Salt Pond Peninsula and the South East Range are unlikely to be the sites of future volcanic activity.
The Pre-Soufrière Volcanic centres of St. Vincent
The pre-Soufrière Volcanic centres of St. Vincent consists of the South-East Volcanics and the Grand Bonhomme and Morne Volcanic Centres (Robertson, 2003).
The South-East Volcanics is the most southerly geologic region on the island. It is a dissected landscape of rounded hills with low topography (<210 m), which extends from the Warrawarrow River in the west to the extensive Yambou lava flow in the east. The area is dominated by red scoriaceous basaltic spatter interbedded with and often overlying, massive to well-jointed basaltic lava flows, which are intruded by dykes. It contains the oldest rocks exposed on the island (2.74 ± 0.11 Ma; Briden, et al., 1979) and is mostly overlain by fine-grained yellow ash, which are correlated with late Pleistocene Yellow Tephra erupted by the Soufrière volcano (Hay, 1959, Rowley, 1978b). The youngest deposits exposed in the area are alluvial silt, sand and gravels found in the river valleys.
The Grand Bonhomme Volcanic Centre extends from Argyle to Colonarie in the east and Sion Hill Bay to Chateaubelair in the west. It is the largest geologic region on the island and is interpreted as a large stratovolcano with interbedded sequences of block and ash pyroclastic flow deposits, ashfall deposits, lava flows and subordinate domes. The landscape is heavily forested and the interior inaccessible and composed of deeply weathered lavas and volcaniclastic deposits. This volcanic centre is a composite of several eruptive centres that are now represented by the topographic highs of Grand Bonhomme (970 m), Petit Bonhomme (747 m), Mount St. Andrews (735 m) and an unnamed peak (1021 m). These peaks are central domes or plugs of volcanoes that coalesced to form a large composite volcanic centre. Previous dating of lavas from the western flank of the Grand Bonhomme Volcanic Centre by Briden et al (1979) obtained ages of 1.33 ± 0.09 and 1.18 ± 0.10 Ma respectively for lava flows at Westwood and Chateaubelair.
The Morne Garu Volcanic Centre occurs immediately to the north of Grand Bonhomme and consists of Mount Brisbane (932 m) to the east and Richmond Peak (1074 m) to the west. These two peaks are the remnants of an eroded Morne Garu crater or caldera that is estimated to have been 3 km in diameter (Sigurdsson, et al., in prep). Morne Garu is largely inaccessible and the underlying volcanics are extensively covered with fine-grained yellow ashfall deposits. Recent ages obtained by Heath et al. (1998, 1998) from lavas at Indian Estate (11 ± 14 ka) and Black Point (180 ± 20 ka) on the western flank of Mount Brisbane indicate that volcanism may have been much younger at this centre and may have overlapped with the Soufrière Volcano to the north. The major formations exposed are lava flows, undifferentiated volcaniclastics, red scoria bombs and yellow ashfall deposits. Reworked alluvial deposits occur in the major river valleys.
Monogenetic spatter cones
A number of rounded spatter cones composed of a poorly consolidated sequence of clast-supported, pumice lapilli airfall, scoria bombs and ash resting on old lava flows occur mainly in the southeast of St Vincent although some are found further north. Eruptive centres were identified at Kings Hill, Diamond (S) and Rose Cottage. Eruptions produced abundant scoria bombs, which fell close to these centres and formed thick, and sometimes welded deposits. Ash and small projectiles deposited further from the vents produced discrete beds.
The best exposure of spatter cones in the northern part of the island occurs at Belleisle Hill where a thick sequence (>20 m) of interbedded grey lapilli-sized ash and red scoria is overlain by yellow ash. The red scoria clasts are composed of olivine microphyric basalts but the scoria beds also contain angular basaltic-andesite.
La Soufrière Volcanic Centre
Occupies the northern third of the island. It is the youngest and only centre considered to be active. Figure 4 (Geological map of La Soufriere volcano(Rowley 1978b)) is a generalized geological map of La Soufriere; no detailed map exists. Its edifice consists of an older Somma ridge to the north which represents the remains of a central vent from which early (Pre-Somma: ≈0.6 Ma – 10 ka) activity occurred. After a major structural failure of the southern flank of this cone, a younger pyroclastic cone formed within this crater and this has been the source of historical (1700 to present) eruptions. On the flanks of the volcano, the oldest formations exposed are basaltic Pre-Somma Lavas and are overlain by the Yellow Tuff Formation. This well bedded pumiceous yellow tephra have been correlated with the yellow pyroclastic fall deposits mantling much of the island (Rowley 1974). Unfortunately, it has not yet been possible to correlate flank and crater wall stratigraphies. Four principal rock formations have been identified in the crater (Figure 5: Geological sketch map of the crater of La Soufrière (Sigurdsson and Carey 1981)). The Debris Flow formation is the lowest exposed formation and is a massive matrix supported deposit consisting of angular basaltic blocks (max. 3m diameter), in a poorly sorted sandy matrix. . Overlying this is the Brown Tuff, a 20 m thick, well-bedded succession of ash and scoria airfall deposits and minor surge layers, which contain angular basaltic lithic fragments. Thick basaltic andesite and andesite lava flows, which form the lower half of the vertical eastern and northern crater walls, are called the Crater Lavas. The topmost deposit exposed in the crater consists of a thick sequence of pyroclastic flow and airfall deposits, which are called the Pyroclastic Formation.
Soufriere St. Vincent Geology Map
Seismicity in the segment of the Lesser Antilles island arc between Grenada and St. Vincent is markedly lower than along the arc to the north and to the south. The epicentral plots reveal that east of the arc shallow and intermediate depth events occur, with the biggest events in this area, for the instrumental period up to November 2017, in the magnitude range 5.1 – 5.5. However, on 2017/11/05, there was an even larger event, at magnitude 5.7, recorded. This may be observed in the plot showing the magnitude distribution of earthquakes in the area since 2000. Along the arc, there exists a seismicity gap, which may be indicative of aseismic movement or a locked segment. If the latter is the reality, then there may be potential for a major earthquake in the Grenada-St. Vincent vicinity. Evidence for this may be found in the historical records, where there are accounts of felt earthquakes on 1822/12/01, and 1822/12/20 that caused significant damage in Grenada. Maximum associated intensities were MMI VIII and VII respectively. Then on 1834/11/25 there was an earthquake in the area causing a considerable amount of minor damage in St. Vincent. The maximum intensity associated was MMI VIII. Similar earthquakes, or larger, today would cause considerable damage in the area and possibly extending to other nearby islands. In addition to the earthquakes that arise from tectonic processes, there may also be volcanic earthquakes associated with La Soufrière volcano, St. Vincent. In general, volcanoes in the region have associated with them a background level of seismicity that is not indicative of volcanic unrest. The cluster of events seen in northern St. Vincent arises from this type of background activity. It is anticipated that elevated, shallow volcanic seismicity would be associated with the volcanic centres, precursory to any future volcanic activity.
La Soufrière Volcano
- 13.33°N, 61.18°W
- Elevation – 1178m
- Last eruption – 2021
La Soufrière is the youngest volcanic centre on St. Vincent. It occupies the northernmost third of the island and is considered to be the only volcano that is likely to erupt in the future. No detailed geological map of the volcano exists although the principal formations have been identified (Robson and Tomblin 1966; Rowley 1978; Sigurdsson 1981; Robertson 1992). The volcanic edifice consists of an older strato-cone or Somma (2.5 km diameter), which forms a steep arcuate ridge to the north, and a younger pyroclastic cone, which has been the source of historic (post 1700) eruptions, nestled within this crater. The older stratovolcano is thought to have been active during the late Pleistocene (~700 ka). The main crater of the Soufrière is about 1.6 km in diameter and is 300-600 m in depth. Located immediately to the northeast is the 1812 crater an oval shaped depression (~450 m diameter and 60 m depth), from which the volcano erupted once (27 April to 6 June 1812).
Geologic map of La Soufrière Volcano in St. Vincent showing the main deposits that make up this volcano.
The crater of La Soufrière volcano taken in 1972 (top) and 1988 (below).
Four principal rock formations have been identified in the crater (Sigurdsson 1981). The Debris Flow formation is the lowest exposed formation and is a massive matrix supported deposit consisting of angular basaltic blocks (max. 3m diameter), in a poorly sorted sandy matrix. Overlying this is the Brown Tuff, a 20 m thick, well-bedded succession of ash and scoria airfall deposits and minor surge layers, which contain angular basaltic lithic fragments. Thick basaltic andesite and andesite lava flows, which form the lower half of the vertical eastern and northern crater walls, are called the Crater Lavas formation. The topmost deposit exposed in the crater consists of a thick sequence of pyroclastic flow and airfall deposits, which are called the Pyroclastic Formation.
The oldest formations exposed on the flanks of the volcano are basaltic lavas, which form the remnants of the pre-historic Somma crater. These are overlain by beds of pumiceous yellow tephra (the Yellow Tephra Formation), which have been correlated with yellow pyroclastic fall deposits that mantle the island (Hay 1959a; Rowley 1978b). The yellow tephra units are often reversely graded and contain airfall beds made up of black scoria and yellow lapilli-sized pumiceous tuff that range in composition from basalt to andesite. In the river valleys, the Yellow Tephra is overlain unconformably by alluvial deposits, basaltic andesite pyroclastic flow deposits s and mudflow deposits. The mudflow deposits are massive, thick (up to 25m) and contain angular blocks of basalt and basaltic andesite. On the lower flanks of the volcano, the mudflow deposits are overlain and interbedded with basaltic andesite pyroclastic flow deposits, thin tephra fall deposits and minor alluvial deposits. The pyroclastic units are discontinuous, channel-fill deposits that show little variation in lithology. There is little distinction between deposits erupted during historic eruptions, apart from deposits from the 1979 eruption which are distinctively rich in basaltic andesite.
Historical Eruptions
During the past 4000 years the volcano has had an average of one explosive eruption every 100 years. The Soufrière volcano has displayed two distinct types of eruptions in the past (Aspinall, Sigurdsson, and Shepherd 1973):
Explosive eruptions
These are the typical “Soufrière” eruptions. They are highly explosive magmatic eruptions1 usually preceded by frequent, strong earthquakes. Rapid rates of production result in the ejection of large volumes of new material in ashfalls from eruption columns2 and as pyroclastic flows and surges3. This type of activity is exemplified by the 1902-03 and 1979 eruptions.
Nonexplosive or Effusive eruptions
This type of eruption is effusive, unaccompanied by earthquakes, and involves smaller volumes of new material than type 1. This type of eruption is exemplified by the 1971-72 eruption. A cyclical pattern of eruptive activity during the past 250 years with alternate explosive and effusive eruptions has been suggested for the volcano (Aspinall et al. 1972).
Future Eruptions
Short-term eruptive activity
In the short-term (i.e. <100 years), the volcanic hazard at the volcano is expected to be quite similar to that experienced in the historic past. The volcano would become hazardous during periods of eruptive activity, remaining for the intervening periods a threat that must be catered for in national development plans. Activity in the short term could be either explosive or effusive or both. Both events may be separated in time but can be regarded as part of a two-phase pattern of eruption. The scale of the explosive phase is expected to range from that of a 1979-type event to that of a 1902-type event. The effusive phase is expected to be quite similar to the 1971-72 eruption. The specific characteristics of these phases, as well as the hazards they are expected to pose are outlined below.
Long-term or worse case scenario
In the longer term, allowances must be made for the possibility of cataclysmic Plinian to Ultraplinian activity fluctuating with Strombolian type eruptions. Although there are no historic records of such activity, the presence of thick late Pleistocene ashfall deposits throughout St Vincent as well as thick scoriaceous ashfall on the lower flanks of the volcano demonstrates that the Soufrière has the capacity for events of this kind.
Related Resources
Geothermal activity associated with the Soufrière volcano is confined to the crater and the base of the southern flank of the volcano. Two groups of high temperature fumaroles are present near the base of the southern part of the andesitic dome that occupies the north-western portion of the summit crater. The fumaroles emit steam and gases and have reduced in vigour since their first manifestation immediately following dome emplacement at the final stages of the 1979 eruption. Along the northern streambed of the Wallibou river at an elevation of 280 m (approximately 1 km from the Trinity waterfalls) a group of lukewarm springs (37°C) occur.
Photograph of the crater of the Soufriere Volcano showing the 1979 lava dome (DO), crater lavas (CR) and the area of fumarolic activity (FA).
Photograph of the area of fumarolic activity located on the lava dome on the crater of the Soufriere volcano.
Scientist from the Soufriere Monitoring Unit collecting gas sample in the crater of the Soufriere volcano
The existence of many hot springs in the Wallibou River valley coupled with the active La Soufriére Volcano suggests the potential for geothermal exploration and exploitation. In 1996, results obtained from geological and geochemical studies conducted by GeothermEX Inc supported the theory that a geothermal resource is present on the Island of St. Vincent. Additionally resistivity data (CSAMT) obtained by Caribbean Power, St. Vincent Ltd. revealed low resistivity areas on the southwest flank of the La Soufriére volcano which support the indications of an active geothermal system. In October 2013, several Magnetotelluric (MT) and TEM surveys were carried out by Reykjavik Geothermal to determine the exact potential of the geothermal resource and the boundaries of its reservoir with the ultimate aim of identifying suitable area(s) for drilling and determining whether the project is feasible. Early indications yielded positive results. However, there are some gaps in the data in areas that were inaccessible by foot. In September 2014, additional MT and TEM surveys were conducted mainly on the North-Eastern portion of the island that confirmed the presence of a high enthalpy resource 200°C. Results of the resistivity survey, as well as preliminary structural studies, revealed that the prospective well field area be located on the eastern side of the island. Potential site locations were narrowed down from eight sites to two. The Geothermal Resource Council bulletin (April, 2015) reported that a bill authorizing the government to secure a USD 15 million loan from Abu Dhabi fund for development to assist in financing the development of geothermal energy in SVG was passed and a 10 MW Geothermal plant is scheduled to be constructed between March 2018 and April 2019. The Caribbean Development Bank also reported in May 2016 that St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) has received a grant of GBP 4 Million to support the development of geothermal energy and is expected to partially finance exploratory drilling in the vicinity of La Soufriére Volcano and assess the feasibility of geothermal resource development for electricity production. This project commenced in 2018 with equipment being set up at the site in 2019.
Before the twentieth century the potentially destructive capacity of this volcano was not fully realised. No monitoring system was in place and scientific knowledge of the system was very limited. Seismological studies at the Soufrière volcano began in 1953 (Figure 5) with the establishment of the Seismic Research Unit and since then has evolved to its present state. Presently, monitoring of the Soufrière volcano is carried out by the Seismic Research Centre assisted by a small local unit (called the Soufrière Monitoring Unit) that operates from the Ministry of Agriculture in Kingstown. The monitoring network consists of five seismic stations, 8 GPS stations and several dry tilt sites. Seismic data are transmitted from field sites to the Belmont Observatory operated by the Soufrière Monitoring Unit. The data are then accessed from Trinidad via the internet. Regular observation is made at the summit of the volcano and measurements taken of lake and fumarole temperature and observed changes in the state of the volcano noted. A detailed description of the evolution of the monitoring network can be found here.
Map of the St. Vincent Volcano Monitoring Network (February 2004).
Photograph of the Wallibou Seismic Station being serviced by technicians from the Soufriere Monitoring Unit.
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