Barbuda 4.71

Barbuda is a small island in the eastern Caribbean that forms part of the sovereign Commonwealth nation of Antigua and Barbuda. It is located to the north of Antigua in the middle of the Leeward Islands. As of September 2017, due to harsh weather conditions and massive destruction to the infrastructure of the island due to Hurricane Irma, the island of Barbuda has been abandoned, with a population of 0. Most of its population of about 1,638 (at the 2011 Census) lived in the town of Codrington. Antigua and Barbuda became a sovereign nation on 1 November 1981, but remained part of the British Commonwealth and a constitutional monarchy. The island has since become a popular tourist destination because of its moderate climate and coastline.The location of the island in the tropics makes it vulnerable to Atlantic hurricanes. In September 2017, Hurricane Irma caused catastrophic damage on the island; it damaged or destroyed 95% of the island's buildings and infrastructure, leaving Barbuda "barely habitable" according to Prime Minister Gaston Browne. Everyone on the island was evacuated to Antigua, leaving Barbuda uninhabited for the first time in modern history.HistoryThe Ciboney (Guanahuatebey) peoples lived on the island of Barbuda during the Stone Age. Arawak and Carib Indians populated the island when Christopher Columbus landed on his second voyage in 1493. Early settlements by the Spanish and French were succeeded by the English, who formed a colony in 1666.