Chandeleur Islands

Map of the Chandeleur Islands

Oil pollution of surface and deep water on June 3, 2010

The Chandeleur Islands , older also Candlemas Islands , are around 90 kilometers long, flat, uninhabited chain of islands in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana , the easternmost point of which lies on them. They belong to the territory of St. Bernard Parish .

The islands were named in the early 18th century by French settlers after the religious festival of the Presentation of the Lord (French: chandeleur , February 2nd ). As an important migratory bird station, the islands are part of the Breton National Wildlife Refuge . Until it was destroyed by a hurricane in 1915, there was a fishing settlement on the islands, and they used to be used for agriculture.

The Chandeleur Islands lie on a sandbank , by alluvial deposits of the Mississippi - Delta has emerged. Throughout history, the shape of the islands has changed steadily, getting smaller and drifting inland. The frequent hurricanes and storm surges have also constantly changed the shape of the islands, with the effects of Hurricanes George (1989) and Katrina (2005) significantly reducing the land area of the archipelago . The lighthouse on the northern tip, which was last in the water, was built in 1960 and was completely destroyed by Katrina. According to a study by the University of New Orleans , the characteristic sand deposits, which so far formed the basis for a regeneration of the island's topography after tropical storms, hardly showed up after "Katrina", so that the future of the islands is uncertain.

structure

The Chandeleur Islands consist of 7 groups of islands:

North Chandeleur Islands
- Chandeleur Islands (in the strict sense)
- North Islands
- New Harbor Islands
- Freemason Islands
South Chandelier Islands
- Curlew Islands
- Grand Gosier Islands
- Breton Islands