which there were major dome collapses and two periods of explosive volcanic eruptions and fountain-collapse pyroclastic flows. The explosion blanketed Plymouth, away, in a thick layer of ash and darkened the sky almost completely. Earthquakes continued to occur in three epicentre zones: beneath the Soufrière Hills volcano, in the ridge running to the northeast, and beneath St George's Hill, about to the northwest. A large eruption on 25 June 1997 resulted in the deaths of nineteen people. The island's airport was directly in the path of the main pyroclastic flow and was completely destroyed. Montserrat's tourist industry also collapsed, although it began partially to recover within fifteen years. The governments of the United Kingdom and Montserrat led the aid effort, including a £41 million package provided to the Montserrat population; however, riots followed as the people protested that the British Government was not doing enough for aid relief. The riots followed a £10 million aid offer by International Development Secretary Clare Short, prompting the resignation of Bertrand Osborne, then Chief Minister of Montserrat, after allegations that he was too pro-British and had not demanded a better offer. The British destroyer took a major role in evacuating Montserrat's population to other islands, including Antigua and Barbuda who warned they would not be able to cope with many more refugees. About 7,000 people, or two-thirds of the population, left Montserrat; 4,000 went to the United Kingdom. Abandoned settlements The following is a list of Montserrat settlements abandoned by the eruption of the Soufrière Hills volcano: Amersham Bethel† Bramble† Cork Hill Dyers† Elberton Fairfield† Farm† Farrell's† Farrell's Yard† Gages Galway's Estate† Harris† Hermitage† Kinsale Lee's Molyneux Long Ground† Morris's† North Olveston (since re-settled) Old Towne (since re-settled) Plymouth – the capital of Montserrat, initially evacuated in August 1995; abandoned and destroyed in 1997† Robuscus Mt† Saint George's Hill Saint Patrick's† Salem (since re-settled) Soufrière† Streatham† Weekes Woodlands (since re-settled) †Settlement was destroyed In addition, the W. H. Bramble Airport was destroyed. Activity since 1999 On 24 December 2006, streaks of red from the pyroclastic flows became visible. On 8 January 2007, an evacuation order was issued for areas in the Lower Belham Valley, affecting an additional 100 people. At 11:27 pm local time on Monday 28 July 2008, an eruption began without any precursory activity. Pyroclastic flow lobes reached Plymouth. These involved juvenile material originating in the collapse of the eruption column. In