The Day the World Ended

The Mount Pelee Disaster: May 7, 1902

De: Gordon Thomas, Max Morgan-Witts

Narrado por: Joe Barrett

In late April 1902, Mount Pelee, a volcano on the Caribbean island Martinique, began to wake up. It emitted clouds of ash and smoke for two weeks until violently erupting on May 8. Over 30,000 residents of St. Pierre were killed; they burned to death under rivers of hot lava and suffocated under pounds of hot ash. Only three people managed to survive: a prisoner trapped in a dungeon-like jail cell, a man on the outskirts of town, and a young girl found floating unconscious in a boat days later.

So how did a town of thousands not heed the warnings of nature and local scientists, instead staying behind to perish in the onslaught of volcanic ash? Why did the newspapers publish articles assuring readers that the volcano was harmless? And why did the authorities refuse to allow the American Consul to contact Washington about the conditions? The answer lies in politics: With an election on the horizon, the political leaders of Martinique ignored the welfare of their people in order to consolidate the votes they needed to win.

A gripping and informative book on the disastrous effects of a natural disaster coupled with corruption, The Day the World Ended reveals the story of a city engulfed in flames and the political leaders that chose to kill their people rather than give up their political power.

©1969 Gordon Thomas and Max Morgan Witts (P)2020 Tantor

French It’s hard to understand in an audible book

I couldn’t keep track of who were two because of their French names but the story was good it was a tragedy and it was well told

Island Apocalypse

A interesting story but dated. The book was first published in 1969 and descriptions of the population of the island reflect the thoughts and opinions of the French colonizers at the turn of the 20th Century.

May 8, 1902

A well read book. Great pace. Clear and concise. Will listen to again. Answers many questions as to why so many died.

Thrilling Account of a Sadly Preventable Disaster

This book was a thrilling page turner about the Mount Pelée explosion of 1902. I had not known about this particular event and was interested in learning about it. This book details the recollections of several survivors and gives a thrilling account of the sadly preventable disaster. It is also a snapshot of the time period, detailing how life in a French colony was, including the rampant sexism and racism. The description of the actions taken and not taken by several prominent community leaders, including the Church are noted. The lives of 29,233 victims could have been saved and no one was held accountable. This book was hard to put down. I read this book using immersion reading while listening to the audio book. The narrator had a gravely voice that handled the French nomenclature easily. Highly recommend this book for the account of one of the worst volcanic disasters many have never heard of.

Hard to listen to this narrator.

Didn't care for the narrator, the story seemed very slow. I'll make sure not to get anymore books by him.

only 4 true survivors

Great first hand accounts from the few survivors and boat captains of the 1902 Mt Peèle eruption. A little outdated vocabulary but not vulgar