When Time Ran Out

In reading this book I kept coming back to the question of how men can put their political careers and reputations ahead of the safety of women and children? When fools rule in an unstable society, they implement foolish self interest laws and decrees that sooner or later brings about the death of those they rule. History shows us this time and again. This book is written in a way that highlights the selfish deeds of not one such fool, but a host of fools who for personal reasons and gain would not listen to sound logic and instead left themselves and those they were sworn to protect, vulnerable to the wraith of nature. Few are innocent in this story of destruction. The story itself almost reads like the chronicles of Moses returning from the mount and finding his people living in sin and worshiping false idols. It was the foolish leadership, in the absence of Moses, who took over and led the people astray. To me, Mt. Pelee in this story, simply represents the natural law of the land acting as its creator meant for it to act. It's always up to men to heed the warnings of natural law and react accordingly. So where was the spiritual leadership of the Church in the days leading up to the eruption of Mount Pelee? It appears that they'd already made a deal with the political machinery in the city of St. Pierre and would not interfere in its decrees, regardless of the evidence of approaching danger. Again, fools following fools. This book is a well documented reading about a natural disaster that took advantage of the foolishness of men and wiped out 30,000 human lives. It would be interesting to see the ethnic breakdown of those who lost their lives. The city was made up of a diverse group of peoples; French, Mulatto, Negro and many foreigners attracted to its "Paris of the Caribbean" moniker. To the reviewer who claims to have done extensive research on this disaster and questions the authenticity of information in this book, I ask you to please share your resources and findings. I find it hard to believe that anyone who reads the well researched evidence presented here in this book can attempt to discredit it with a few opinionated lines and self-crowned scholarship. Does the reviewer not see the harm in his words without sound facts? This book teaches a serious lesson to mankind. If the lesson is not learned it's likely that there will be another Mt. Pelee to teach another town controlled by fools.

So many people killed by a Nuee Ardente (Glowing Cloud), released during the catatrophic eruption of Montagne Pelee, in 1902. Political skulduggery, chicanery, and a total unwillingness to confront a deadly situation, especially by the Governor Louis Mouttet.

For fast-paced excitement, you cannot beat The Day the World Ended, which is a day-by-day account of the 1902 volcano, starting on the 2nd of May 1902 and ending on the 8th, that weaves into this time several strong human interest stories. It was written in 1969, 67 years after the eruption, when the authors could still find a few people close to those times to interview. I get the feeling it was based very much on interviews, which gives it an immediacy not as apparent in the other two books: The Last Days of St. Pierre by Ernest Zebrowski and La Catastrophe by Alwyn Scarth. If you can only read one book, make it this one. it reads like a novel. The cost of this approach is that we cannot be sure all the stories the authors heard were accurate, so we will never know if some of the stories told here, like the placing of troops to stop people leaving the town are true. But for a feeling of impending doom, this book creates the atmosphere perfectly.

To me this review does not do justice to the most compelling aspect of the book, which is how political pressure, and assurances of safety in the face of all evidence to the contrary, by governmental officials and other trusted leaders dissuaded the people of St. Pierre from evacuating the city in time to save their lives. I read this book many years ago and have forgotten some of the details, but this theme -- more popularly explored in "Jaws" and recently in "Isaac's Storm" -- has stayed in my mind. Most readers will never be threatened by a volcanic eruption, but this book is a somewhat grim reminder that our own leaders may be lying about impending natural disasters. Remember Pelee!

Thomas and Witts tell the story of a week in May, 1902,when the Carrabean city of St. Pierre was obliterated by a volcanic eruption. When I first saw this book, I wondered how anyone could pen over 150 pages on a volcano that wiped a city out in seconds, leaving only two survivors. I thought there would not be much to write about. Boy was I wrong! It turns out that in the week prior to the eruption, St. Pierre was hit by landslides, a tsunami, and even a deadly snake infestation! Several hundred were killed before the great event itself. The final eruption is simply the climatic horror and can almost be seen as a blessing, putting people out of their misery. This book is probably hard to find now, but it is worth getting, and will interest just about everyone from the scientist to the casual reader.