What killed the citizens of Saint Pierre during the Mount Pelee eruption of 1902?
The citizens of St Pierre were killed when a pyroclastic cloud consisting of superheated steam and volcanic gases and dust travelled down Mount Pelee to the city. This pyroclastic cloud covered the entire city, instantly igniting everything combustible with which it came in contact. This was followed by a half-hour downpour of muddy rain mixed with ashes. Of the population of between 28,000 and 30,000, there were only two survivors: a prisoner held in an underground cell in the town’s jail, later pardoned, and a man who lived at the edge of the city.