Saint-Philippe Explained

Saint-Philippe
Commune Status:Commune
Map:Locator map of Saint-Philippe 2018.png
Arrondissement:Saint-Pierre
Canton:Saint-Benoît-2
Insee:97417
Postal Code:97442
Mayor:Olivier Rivière[1]
Term:2020 - 2026
Intercommunality:CA du Sud
Coordinates:-21.3594°N 55.7678°W
Elevation M:40
Elevation Min M:0
Elevation Max M:2630
Area Km2:153.94

Saint-Philippe (pronounced as /fr/) is a commune in the French overseas department of Réunion. It is located in southeastern Reunion.

Geography

Saint-Philippe is on the highest point on the island. It borders the municipalities of Saint-Joseph and Sainte-Rose, to the west and north respectively. Although it is a coastal area, the administrative centre is in Les Hauts (the highland area of the island).

Climate

Saint-Philippe has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen climate classification Af). The average annual temperature in Saint-Philippe is . The average annual rainfall is with March as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in January, at around, and lowest in July, at around . The highest temperature ever recorded in Saint-Philippe was on 10 December 2019; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 20 August 2008.

History

A notable event in the commune's history was in 1897, when the British troopship RIMS Warren Hastings ran aground in the middle of the night. Two seamen died as a result, the crash sparked by a compass malfunction resulting from the eruption of the Piton de la Fournaise. On board the ship was some electricity, for which the village of Tremblet would have to wait until 1984 to finally receive.

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Répertoire national des élus: les maires. data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 2 December 2020. French.