fɹʌmðɪ ˈɛnd ʌvðə nˈaɪntiːnθ sˈɛntʃɚɹi, ðə dʒˈuːz ʌv pleɪtˈiːlɪˌaɪ stˈɑːɹɾᵻd ɡɹˈædʒuːəli ˈɛmɪɡɹˌeɪɾɪŋ tʊ ɐmˈɛɹɪkə ænd sˈaʊθ ˈæfɹɪkə, ænd ðə flˈoʊ kəntˈɪnjuːd ˌɪntʊ ðɪ ˌɪntɚwˈɔːɹ pˈiəɹɪəd, pɹəpˈɛld baɪ ɐ hjˈuːdʒ fˈaɪɚ ðæt dˈɛvᵻstˌeɪɾᵻd hˈæf ʌvðə tˈaʊn ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd twˈɛnti θɹˈiː.
From the end of the 19th century, the Jews of Plateliai started gradually emigrating to America and South Africa, and the flow continued into the interwar period, propelled by a huge fire that devastated half of the town in 1923.