Photo courtesy of BGS © UKRI 1996 Ref Sourced http://geoscenic.bgs.ac.uk/asset-bank/action/search?newSearch=true&quickSearch=true&cachedCriteria=1 © MVO http://www.mvo.ms/

“I am a resident living in Montserrat and have been here from the beginning. This merely means when Montserrat was whole and villages like Gages and Harris’s still were habitable. After the eruption in 1995, my family and I were first relocated to Weekses and then lived in Happy Hill, Salem for awhile and then our home is now in Upper Salem. As picturesque as Montserrat is, life can be a real struggle. The cost of living is extremely high as there is no price control on anything in the stores. Necessities such as food is a must so there is no choice but to buy at the price at which it is presented. Living from wage to wage is a norm and having savings is an impossibility to many. If you are not qualified enough to have a Government job or even a role in the private sector, then the throes of poverty are quite visible. I have tried becoming self employed and tried selling baked goods and drinks to help myself but again buying the ingredients to make these products outweigh any profit that would make a difference to my life. I would not leave Montserrat as there are some pros that would always make me stay. I love the idea of the small community and that sometimes you can turn to help from someone.

This year though has had a very massive impact on that same small community. The newness of this pandemic has caused a lot of people to isolate. The fear of contracting a virus that can kill you has infested fear in many. So small business owners are faced with a dip in their customers and further worry where their next income would come from. There is not a lot of places that you can turn to for help because many Charitable Organisations on Montserrat are dependant on donors who also live on island and who themselves are facing income declines of their own. There is a clear income inequality between the rich and the poor as the poor is very poor and the rich is very rich. Home is Montserrat but it is an absolute struggle day to day.”– Anonymous