Dozens of people evacuated two towns on Japan’s main southern island, Kyushu, where a volcano spewed ash and large boulders into the night sky. Kagoshima prefecture. Footage from Japanese public television NHK showed orange flames flashing near the crater and black smoke with ash rising above the mountain peak. On Monday morning, 33 of them left their homes for a nursing facility in a safer part of the region, according to the city of Kagoshima. NHK said other people likely to be evacuated could have been evacuated to other locations. He called on residents to pay close attention to updates from local authorities to protect their lives. Ash dust was visible on the cars in Kagoshima, but no damage or injuries were reported. Schools in the area are on summer vacation but closed on Monday for clubs and after-school activities. The risks of more explosive violent eruptions were low, but residents should still watch out for rockfalls, mudslides and pyroclastic flows, said Tsuyoshi Nakatsuji, a JMA volcano monitoring official. He also advised residents to draw curtains and stay away from windows, which could shatter from the force of a blowout. It was once an island, but became a peninsula following an eruption in 1914 that killed 58 people. Sakurajima is about 600 miles southwest of Tokyo.
Dozens of people evacuated two towns on Japan’s main southern island, Kyushu, where a volcano spewed ash and large boulders into the night sky.
Video above: Japan’s Sakurajima volcano erupts
Large boulders fell up to 2.5 km from the Sakurajima volcano on Sunday evening in the southern prefecture of Kagoshima. Footage from Japanese public television NHK showed orange flames flashing near the crater and black smoke with ash rising above the mountain peak.
The Japan Meteorological Agency raised the eruption alert to the highest level of five and advised 51 residents of two towns facing the volcano to leave their homes.
On Monday morning, 33 of them left their homes for a nursing facility in a safer part of the region, according to the city of Kagoshima. NHK said other evacuees could have been evacuated to other locations.
“We will put people’s lives first and do everything we can to assess the situation and respond to any emergencies,” Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihiko Isozaki told reporters. He called on residents to pay close attention to updates from local authorities to protect their lives.
Ash dust was visible on cars in Kagoshima, but no damage or injuries were reported. Schools in the area are on summer vacation but closed on Mondays for clubs and extracurricular activities.
Video below: a volcanic eruption captured during a match
JMA warned of the possibility of volcanic rock falls within 1.8 miles of the crater and a possible flow of lava, ash and burning gas within 1.2 miles.
Chances of more explosive violent eruptions were low, but residents should still watch out for rockfalls, mudslides and pyroclastic flows, said Tsuyoshi Nakatsuji, a JMA volcano monitoring official. He also advised residents to draw curtains and stay away from windows, which could shatter from the force of an eruption.
Sakurajima on the southern main island of Kyushu is one of Japan’s most active volcanoes and has erupted several times. Once an island, it became a peninsula following an eruption in 1914 that killed 58 people.
Sakurajima is about 600 miles southwest of Tokyo.
Video below: Evacuations following a volcanic eruption