Mount Aso erupts without warning in Japan

Area evacuated as huge plumes of smoke billow into sky

Alexandra Sims
Monday 14 September 2015 10:08 BST
Comments
Authorities have raised the alert level in the area, preventing people from approaching within 1.25 miles of the volcano’s mouth
Authorities have raised the alert level in the area, preventing people from approaching within 1.25 miles of the volcano’s mouth

A volcano on the southern Japanese island of Kyushu has erupted unexpectedly, sending huge clouds of smoke 2,000 metres into the air.

There have been no immediate reports of injuries or damage since Mount Aso’s eruption on Monday and authorities have raised the alert level in the area, preventing people from approaching within 1.25 miles of the volcano’s mouth.

Local police said they have safely evacuated people from a ropeway station on the mountain and other visitors have been moved to lower elevations, according to national television network NHK.

Police are still checking to see if any hikers were in the restricted area during the eruption.

Some flights to the nearby city of Kumamoto have been diverted due ash released into the air.

It is still unclear as to whether there was any volcanic flow from the mountain.

Yasuaki Sudo, a researcher at the Aso Volcano Museum, told NHK: “The most important thing is to stay out of the danger zone.”

The Japanese archipelago sits on the Pacific “ring of fire” and has more than 100 volcanoes.

Mount Aso had a smaller eruption in August and eruptions in 2014 that disrupted tourism in the area.

The eruption last September of another volcano, Mount Ontake in central Japan, killed 57 people.

Additional reporting by Associated Press

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in