Montserrat is a British Overseas Territory in the Caribbean. It is part of the Leeward Islands, the northern portion of the Lesser Antilles chain of the West Indies. Montserrat is about 16 km (10 mi) long and 11 km (7 mi) wide, with roughly 40 km (25 mi) of coastline. It is nicknamed "The Emerald Isle of the Caribbean" both for its resemblance to coastal Ireland and for the Irish ancestry of many of its inhabitants. Montserrat is the only non-fully sovereign full member of the Caribbean Community and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States, though it is far from being the only dependency in the Caribbean overall. Staying a part of the United Kingdom proved especially fortuitous in the late 1990s, when the southern half the island had to be evacuated. Its capital and international airport were devastated by a volcanic eruption but many were able to travel to the U.K., which also helped rebuild. Within ten years important housing, government buildings, and a new airport were established in the north, though the population remains about one third of what it was before the eruption.
