PENTECTE

also called Pentecost, formerly Aragh, or Raga, island of Vanuatu, in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, 60 miles (100 km) southeast of Espiritu Santo island. Volcanic in origin, it occupies 169 square miles (438 square km) and has a central mountain ridge that rises to 3,107 feet (947 m). Many permanent streams flow down the eastern slopes into fertile valleys, where copra and coffee are cultivated. Pentecte is known for its land divers-men who construct towers up to 80 feet (24 m) tall of bush timber and vines from which they dive headfirst to within inches of the ground. The divers are suspended only by vines, short and springy enough to break their fall, attached to the tower and to their ankles. Careful planning allows them to survive these plunges. The island has one hospital and an airstrip. Pop. (1989) 11,341.