Editing History of Martinique (section)

=== Mount Pelée eruption ===
On May 8, 1902, a blast from the volcano [[Mount Pelée|Mont Pelée]] destroyed the town of St. Pierre, killing almost all of its 29,000 inhabitants. The only survivors were a shoemaker and a prisoner who was saved by his position in a jail dungeon with only a single window. Because Saint Pierre was the commercial capital of the island, there were four banks in the city—the [[Banque de la Martinique]], [[Banque Transatlantique]], a branch of the Colonial Bank of London, and the [[Crédit Foncier Colonial]]. All were destroyed. The town had to be completely rebuilt and lost its status as the commercial capital, a title which shifted to [[Fort-de-France]]. Due to the eruption, refugees from Martinique arrived in boats to the southern villages of [[Dominica]] and some remained permanently on the island.