Saint-Philippe () is a
commune in the
French
French may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France
** French people, a nation and ethnic group
** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices
Arts and media
* The French (band), ...
overseas department
The overseas departments and regions of France (, ; DROM) are the five departments and regions of the French Republic which are located outside European France (also known as " metropolitan France"). These overseas entities have exactly the s ...
of
Réunion
Réunion (; ; ; known as before 1848) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France. Part of the Mascarene Islands, it is located approximately east of the isl ...
. It is located in the southeast of the island.
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 center is in
Les Hauts (the highland area of the island).
Climate
Saint-Philippe has a
tropical rainforest climate
A tropical rainforest climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southeast Florida, United States ...
(
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
''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
Piton de la Fournaise (; ) is a shield volcano on the eastern side of Réunion island, a French overseas department and region, in the Indian Ocean. It is currently one of the most active volcanoes in the world, along with Kīlauea in the Haw ...
. On board the ship was some electricity, for which the village of Tremblet would have to wait until 1984 to finally receive.
Population
See also
*
Communes of the Réunion department
The following is a list of the 24 communes of the Réunion (an overseas department of France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories incl ...
*
Ravine d'Ango
References
Communes of Réunion
{{Reunion-geo-stub