Low extrusion rates occurred at Soufrière Hills' lava dome at the beginning of the interval 31 March to 7 April. Continued lava-dome growth was focused E, with a lava lobe growing in that direction and the majority of rockfalls and pyroclastic flows occurring in the SE to NE sector. Photographs taken on 6 April clearly showed slightly elevated extrusion rates with lobe development on the E side of the dome. One moderate-sized pyroclastic flow occurred around 1030 on 2 April, resulting in minor ashfall to the W of the island. During the report period, the sulfur-dioxide flux averaged 578 metric tons per day. The hydrogen chloride to sulfur dioxide ratio was 2.3 and 2.6 on 4 and 5 April, respectively.

Geological Summary. The complex, dominantly andesitic Soufrière Hills volcano occupies the southern half of the island of Montserrat. The summit area consists primarily of a series of lava domes emplaced along an ESE-trending zone. The volcano is flanked by Pleistocene complexes to the north and south. English's Crater, a 1-km-wide crater breached widely to the east by edifice collapse, was formed about 2000 years ago as a result of the youngest of several collapse events producing submarine debris-avalanche deposits. Block-and-ash flow and surge deposits associated with dome growth predominate in flank deposits, including those from an eruption that likely preceded the 1632 CE settlement of the island, allowing cultivation on recently devegetated land to near the summit. Non-eruptive seismic swarms occurred at 30-year intervals in the 20th century, but no historical eruptions were recorded until 1995. Long-term small-to-moderate ash eruptions beginning in that year were later accompanied by lava-dome growth and pyroclastic flows that forced evacuation of the southern half of the island and ultimately destroyed the capital city of Plymouth, causing major social and economic disruption.

Sources: Washington Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC), Montserrat Volcano Observatory (MVO)