OLVESTON, Montserrat (Reuter) - Rescue workers on Thursday found the bodies of six people killed in a deadly blast of hot gases and rocks from a volcano on the Caribbean island of Montserrat. The dead, who were not immediately identified, were the first victims of Soufriere Hills volcano since it roared to life in a rain of ash, rock and smoke on July 18, 1995, ending nearly four centuries of virtual dormancy. Several other people remained unaccounted for. Between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. EDT (1700 and 1800 GMT) on Wednesday, part of the giant dome of volcanic material that has

been growing inside the volcano collapsed, dousing much of the island with ash and sending a pyroclastic flow -- a fast-moving rain of superheated gases, ash and rock -- toward the eastern side of the island. Authorities said seven villages along the flow burst into flames, all of them in the danger zone, which has been evacuated for 14 months. A few of the people affected were residents who had refused to evacuate. Others were farmers returning to feed animals and check on their property. They said residents should be alert and avoid the danger zone. Montserrat's population has shrunk from 11,000 to 6,800 people since the volcanic eruptions began in 1995.